Demon of Wind
by Mr Makulu
Summary: AU. The three Wudai Warriors of the Xiaolin temple are faced with a new challenge when they accidently unlock Wuya's apprentice, Rai the Wind demon. Things soon become complicated, especially when Rai decides it's time for a change.
1. Awakening

**Disclaimer: I do not own Xiaolin Showdown or any characters that appear on the show.**

Kimiko was fuming as she put the Wu back.

_Who does that egotistical, pompous little jerk think he is? Talking to me like I'm second rate just because I am a girl._

Kimiko put the two ton tunic in its draw and slammed it a little too hard.

_And if he makes one more comment about my upper body strength…_

The Mantis flip coin slipped out of her hand and fell to the bottom of the vault. Kimiko's blood turned cold as she ran down to find it.

"Not again, not again."

She reached the bottom of the vault and spotted the Mantis flip coin. She picked it up and examined it. It was completely unharmed. Kimiko let out a sigh of relief and leaned against the vault wall. No evil earwig coming out tonight. She was brought out of her thoughts when the she was leaning on gave way. She sat up, rubbing the back of her head and looked to see where the wall had gone. Instead she now saw a dark tunnel leading into the darkness. If this had been Tokyo, she probably would have been freaked out but for a place where a she had to clean out a dragons litter box once a week a vanishing wall seemed entirely logical. Kimiko stood up and dusted her self off. She then looked back and forth between the tunnel and the stairway out of here.

_Which way to go?_

She had no idea where the tunnel lead and the fact that it had until now been hidden did make one wonder. She did know what was waiting up the stairs though; a cocky little monk and a cowboy that had promised to give her his rendition of "Stars and Stripes Forever" in belch major.

_Dark, creepy tunnel it is._

Kimiko created a small fire ball in her hand and started walking down the tunnel. She soon came to a chamber. She made her fire ball bigger so that it lit the whole room. To her disappointment, it was empty excepted for a statue of a teen aged boy.

Why would someone go through the trouble of making a statue just to leave it at the bottom of a vault?

She then noticed that it had a spear sticking out of its chest. Kimiko raised an eyebrow, she had heard about people sticking it to art but wasn't this a little too literal? Kimiko walked closer to the statue, she then made the fireball float out of her hand and stay above the statue to offer her better light. First thing she noticed (apart from the fact that he, like nearly everyone else, was taller than her) was the clothes that he had been wearing. It looked a lot like the robes Omi and Clay wore at the temple.

_He must have been a Xiaolin Dragon too. I wonder who he was and who he ticked off to have his statue dumped here._

Around his neck hung a medallion, it was reasonably simple; no writing , only a spiral engraved on it. The Statues hair was relatively short but spiked up like it had been mess up by the wind. His eyes were closed and his face looked relaxed, almost as if he was sleeping. He also looked kinda cute, not Omi/puppy cute, more handsome cute. Kimiko's eyes widened as she heard herself.

_Cute? Handsome? Kimiko girl you have got to get your self a love life if you're starting to get attracted to a statue, even though this one looks so real._

She stuck out a hand to feel his face, almost expecting it to feel like touching skin. She felt a twinge of disappointment when her hand felt cold stone. Slowly she moved her hand down from his right temple, across his cheek, finally stopping on his lips. Kimiko frowned, for some reason she felt sorry for him; she knew she wouldn't like being left at the bottom of the vault with a spear in her chest.

_Well in that case, I can't move you but I can at least try to take out that spear out._

She grabbed the spear and pulled. The spear slid out like it had been greased. Kimiko was surprised that it had come out so easily. She looked for the hole in the statue where the spear had been. She was shocked when she couldn't find one.

_What the…?_

Kimiko was brought out of her thoughts when she heard someone calling her.

"Whoops, gotta go. See ya round," Kimiko said to the statue.

She ran off; spear still in hand, unaware the statue's eyes had just opened.

* * *

Kimiko stepped out of the vault to see Clay and Omi stand in the doorway of the meditation room where the vault was. When Omi saw Kimiko carrying a spear he hid behind Clay.

"Oh there you are," Clay said, "Omi has something he would like to say."

"Perhaps I can say it some other time, like when Kimiko isn't armed!"

"No Omi, say it now."

Fearfully Omi stepped out from behind Clay. He gave a quick bow to Kimiko, seemingly scared to expose his neck to Kimiko for too long.

"I humbly give my apology for what I had said earlier, it was mean and inappropriate."

Kimiko features softened slightly.

"After all you can not help it that you were born a girl."

Kimiko tightened her grip on the spear.

"Not that there is anything wrong with girls," Omi added quickly before giving her a big nervous smile.

Kimiko sighed, it wasn't wait she would call sincere but considering that this was Omi she realised that was probably the best she was going to get from him.

"Ok, apology accepted but next time think before you speak."

"I always think before I speak."

"Next time think harder."

At this Dojo stuck his head out of Clay's hat.

"Is it safe to come out?" he asked.

Kimiko pursed her lips, was she really that scary when she got mad. Instead of answering she decided to use the better light to examine the spear. The spear seemed both simple and strange to her. The staff part of it was a gold metal but was too light to be actual gold. The blade seemed to be made of a blue crystal shaped into the traditional leaf shape. Half way up the staff was a black section; it was hand width and seems to be a handle of some sort. But what use was a handle half way up a spear? She also noticed that this spear didn't have a tassel below the blade like most Qiang (Chinese Spear) did. Like she had said before, it was both simple and strange. She was brought out of her thoughts when she felt a weight resting on her shoulder. She looked to see that it was Dojo.

"You know that spear looks familiar," Dojo said, "Where did you get it?"

"Oh just found it in the bottom of the vault, stuck in a statue that I had found," Kimiko answered.

"Didn't strike me as a type to go for the Valkyrie look," Clay said with a smirk.

Kimiko smiled.

"Nah, not my style, though maybe I'll hang it in my cubical, you know a sort of extreme retro look."

Clay just shook his head, no matter how long he knew the girl he still couldn't understand her sometimes. Omi on the other hand couldn't understand her at all. Dojo seemed to be pondering something.

"A spear…at the bottom of a vault…in a statue…" he muttered to him self.

He suddenly went into panic mood when the pieces fell together in his head.

"GREAT GHOST OF DASHI, THE SPEAR OF DASHI!"

Dojo leapt off of Kimiko and tried to wrench the spear from her fingers. Kimiko held on because she didn't like people yanking things from her.

"We have to put the spear back before he gets loose," Dojo said frantically.

Clay picked Dojo up by his neck.

"Hold up lil buddy," Clay said to the Dragon, "Before who gets out?"

"Whoa how long was I out for? I feel as if it's been a millennium," voice called out.

Dojo ran for cover under Clay's hat while the Wudai warriors turned to the vault, ready to face what ever manner of creature came out. They were disappointed when all that came out was a teen age boy.

"Well that was a bit of a dud," Clay muttered.

Omi as well seemed disappointed that it wasn't some great evil to defeat. Kimiko on the other hand was shocked; it was the statue she had pulled the spear out of, only in human form and in colour. He had brown hair and tan skin. She now also realised that he wasn't a Dragon. While his robes had looked like Omi's and Clay's by design, they were nothing like theirs by colour. The pants were black, as was the base colour of the outer shirt. The ends of the sleeves were dark purple and around his waist was a similar purple sash. Snaking around and down his right sleeve was a green winged serpent and his left upper sleeve sported a purple crow. Visible at the v of the outer shirt was a green inner shirt. As he turned his back, she saw the Chinese symbol for wind written in green on his back. A gold medallion hung around his neck. He let out a big yawn and stretched.

"Man magic induced sleep is refreshing but it really throws you round the bend," he muttered as he started to examine his surroundings.

The Dragons stayed in their fighting positions, expecting him to attack at any moment. They stayed like that until they realised he wasn't attacking. He wasn't even acknowledging that there was anyone there.

"Uh, isn't this the part where he attacks and we fight?" Kimiko asked Clay.

"Maybe he missed that class," Clay answered.

"Then I shall instruct him on proper combat etiquette," Omi said.

Omi walked up to the guy.

"Excuse me perhaps you are unaware of how combat works…" Omi began.

"Be with you in moment tiny, just got to get my bearings," the guy interrupted.

"I am not tiny, I am compact," Omi protested.

"Well 'Compact', mind telling me where I am?"

"You are in the Xiaolin Temple and I …"

"Xiaolin Temple? You mean Dashi finally got round to building it?" the guy interrupted, "when did he do that?"

"Uh, about 1500 years ago," Omi answered.

"1500 years? I really am out of the loop."

"Yes, well as I was saying I am Omi, greatest of the Wudai warriors," Omi said.

The guy looked at Omi, clearly unimpressed. When Omi saw the glares he was getting from Clay and Kimiko he quickly added, "and these are the other Wudai warriors."

The guy seemed disinterested until he saw Kimiko which caused a big smile to develop on his face. He did a singled handed vault off of Omi's head, causing Omi to face plant into the floor and landed in front of her. His face was now very close to hers. She looked into his green eyes and found that they were slit like a cats. It seemed to go well with the predatory grin he now had.

"And does this Wudai warrior have a name to go with that pretty face of hers?" he asked.

Kimiko stepped back, she usually was good at handling come-ons but this guy seemed get her unbalanced, it was probably the eyes. At this Clay stepped in between the two, his big brother instincts seemingly kicking in.

"You know where I come from a fella gives his name first before asking a lady for hers," he said coolly.

"Well I have no idea what a 'fella' is but if I meet one I'll tell them that," the guy answered.

"I was referring to you."

"Oh well in that case I'm…"

Dojo, not comfortable being so close, shot out of Clay's hat ran for the door.

"CLAY HOLD HIM OFF, I'LL GO TELL MASTER FUNG THAT RAI HAS ESCAPED!!" he shouted over his shoulder as he ran out.

"Still the epitome of courage I see," The guy mused before turning back to Clay, "So I take it that you're Clay, the midget already said that he was Omi, as the gecko said my name is Rai. Since all the men are introduced may I now ask the pretty girl for her name?"

"My name is Kimiko," Kimiko answered from behind Clay.

Omi leapt in between Clay and Rai. Feeling a little cramped and now having two guys between him and the pretty girl, Rai stepped back.

"Rai, Rai the demon?" Omi asked, "I have read of you."

"Really? What did it say?" Rai asked.

"That you are Wuya's apprentice."

Kimiko and Clay's eye's widened. _Demon?_ _Wuya's apprentice? _Rai huffed slightly.

"Is that all the history books are saying bout me, I knew I should has gotten a publisher," he muttered, "oh by the way, someone left this lying around."

Rai pulled out the Mantis Flip coin. The Wudai warriors went bug eyed.

"Give that back, Wuya's apprentice, or face a Xiaolin butting kicking," Omi warned.

Rai smirked.

"Well why don't you come and get it short stuff?"

Angered, Omi leapt at Rai.

"Leopard strike!"

"Wind!"

A strange of gust wind erupted from Rai and sent Omi flying backwards in to a column; he then slid down until he hit the floor, little Omi heads circling around.

"So many Omis, how wondrous," Omi said before passing out.

"Greatest of the Wudai warriors huh?"

"Why you little varmint," Clay snarled before leaping at Rai.

Rai fell on his back and kicked Clay in the stomach with both feet, sending Clay flying into the cauldron. Rai kicked himself back up to his feet.

"So first I'm a 'fella' now I'm a 'varmint'? Please make up your mind."

Kimiko dropped the spear and lit a fire ball in each hand. She was ready to rumble.

"Here you go," Rai suddenly said flipping the coin towards Kimiko.

She extinguished the flames to catch the coin. She looked at it disbelievingly as Rai walked up to her.

"You're just giving it to me," Kimiko asked, "what's the catch?"

Rai shrugged.

"No catch, you must have dropped it when you walked out, I don't want it so why should I keep it?"

"Why beat up my two friends then?"

Rai shrugged again.

"Clay was self defence; Omi was because I couldn't resist a challenge. You on the other hand, I have no need or desire to fight."

At that Rai walked pass Kimiko towards the door.

"I'll see you round, little firefly," he said over his shoulder.

"Wait you're going to walk out just like that?" she asked, not believing what she was seeing.

"Unless you plan to stop me, yes," he answered as he walked through the door.

She just stared as he walked through the door. Her brain suddenly kicked in and she went running after him. He had just attacked her two friends, she couldn't let that stand. She ran through the door and looked; Rai had vanished. Having lost him, Kimiko just leaned against the doorway.

* * *

**Author's Note: Well here is the first chapter, tell me what you think, those who are reading my Pains of a Dragon story don't worry I'll update it soon. I just wanted to get a start on this story too. **

**Some notes on the story line that may or may not be obvious. In this universe, there is no such thing as a Xiaolin Dragon of Wind (wind is not a Chinese element anyway). Raimundo's name in this story is going to be to Rai, it is Japanese for thunder so it works (I know this is set in China, but I like his name the way it is). Up until now Clay, Omi and Kimiko have been a fighting evil and finding Wu as a trio, there is no forth dragon (excluding Dojo). Any major gaps in the tv storyline created by this will be filled as the story progresses, I promise.**


	2. Information

**Author's note: In reply to the anonymous reviewer, I had originally intended to stop the first chapter right after Kimiko pulled out the spear but it felt like I was dragging the awakening out a bit too much by giving it two chapters. I will try to keep in mind not to rush the story.**

**Now that that's said; on with the story.**

Rai ran as fast as he could, putting as much distance as he could between him and the temple. If Wuya had seen him fraternising with people from Dashi's temple he probably wouldn't walk straight for a week.

_Where is Wuya anyway? You'd think she would have come looking for me. Well I guess as the saying goes, no heroes amongst thieves._

He stopped running when he was satisfied with the distance he made. Rai being a demon certainly did make travel easier. Looked at what lay on the horizon and his jaw dropped. What lay before him was like nothing he had seen before; buildings that reached for the sky, noises that he had never heard before and bright lights everywhere. Rai rubbed his eyes to make sure it wasn't a trick.

_What is this place? There is no way this can still be China._

Rai took a deep breath to calm down.

_But then again the midget at the temple did say that it's been 1500 years._

Rai slapped his forehead. He had left the spear at the temple.

* * *

"So Rai has been released, this is very troubling," Master Fung said as he examined the Spear of Dashi. 

"Here you go Omi," Kimiko said caringly as she handed him an ice pack.

"Thank you," Omi said, taking the ice pack from her, "Oh that was a most humiliating defeat."

"Yeah, now I know how it feels to be on the other end of a cow tipping," Clay said.

"Well you were facing a wind demon," Dojo said, "you should be more careful."

"We kinda figured he was a wind demon after he sent Omi flying across the room without touching him," Kimiko said irritably, "though a heads up might have been nice _before_ you ran for it."

Dojo shifted his eyes side to side nervously.

"So who is this guy?" Clay asked.

"Yeah and why wasn't he mentioned in the temple records?" Kimiko asked, "all creatures that the temple have captured after Wuya are listed."

"That is because Rai had been trapped before Wuya had," Master Fung said.

Dojo took in a deep breath before he started to explain.

"About ten years before Wuya was trapped, back when Chase and Guan had only learning the ropes for a few years, like you guys, Dashi had captured Rai and trapped him."

"Why did they trapped Rai first?" Kimiko asked "Wouldn't Wuya have been a better choice to go first?"

"Things back then hadn't been as cut and dry as history made it," Dojo explained.

"What do you mean?" Omi asked.

"Wuya hadn't been the extreme Heylin witch that she was right before Dashi defeated her. She had magic but not enough to have an edge. She used to rely on her fighting ability, strength and female wiles to win. This worked for a while until things started to turn against her when Dashi had deemed his apprentices good enough to fight beside him. With the fight three against one Wuya decided that it was time for her to get an apprentice of her own. In came Rai the demon."

"Well Omi told us that Rai was Wuya's apprentice but that still doesn't explain who he is," Kimiko said.

"That's the thing, we have no idea who he was," Dojo explained, "Before he appeared as Wuya's apprentice there was no record about him though we have reason to believe he came from the west but even that is uncertain. We knew he was a wind demon but even that meant nothing since we couldn't tell what sort of demon he was."

"Ok he was a mystery I get it but what made him so much of a threat?" Kimiko asked.

"Well you see the fact he was a mystery that made him a threat," Dojo explained, "we didn't know what he was and he seemed to break nearly every rule."

Kimiko raised an eyebrow.

"He was a threat because he didn't follow the rules? Isn't that what the Heylin side does?" she asked.

"Well yeah they don't follow our rules but there are some rules they've got to follow. Even a Heylin witch like Wuya has limitations. Rai didn't follow any rules, he didn't need to feed on blood or chi, didn't have a time when he was weakened, didn't need anything to sustain he human form, wasn't killed by cleansing techniques. The kid had moves and no way to stop him."

"Through knowledge comes power so there is no greater advantage then keeping information from your opponent," Master Fung said ominously.

"Tell me about it, the kid was running circles around Chase and Guan," Dojo said, "Dashi even tried creating Wu to match his abilities but not even that stopped him."

Clay, Omi and Kimiko's jaws open slightly, not even wu made to stop him worked, so how would they stop him?

"By the time we finally did trap him with the spear, he had helped Wuya gain the spells she needed to be able to summon stone creatures, animate statues and more or less make a real nuisance of her self. However, lucky for us, the lost of Rai was a hit to Wuya's capabilities. Ten years later we finally came out on top."

"So now that Rai is back, will he go after the Shen Gong Wu as well?" Omi asked.

"I doubt it," Dojo replied, "But if he did that wouldn't be the worst of our trouble."

"What do you mean?" Omi asked

"For some reason, Wuya has Rai's complete loyalty. There is not a single order that Wuya has given him that he hasn't carried out. If Wuya gets her number two man back we are going to be in a lot of trouble."

Kimiko looked down cast, so the boy she had meet at the bottom of the vault was a demon. And to think she felt sorry for it.

"So why was his location hidden from us?" Kimiko asked.

"We didn't want to risk him be discovered so once the temple was built Dashi hid him away from everyone including Chase, Guan and the rest of the monks," Dojo explain, "It wasn't personal it was just precaution."

Not wanting to waste more time Clay asked, "So how do we stop him?"

"All you've got to do is get him with the spear again and he'll go back to being a statue," Dojo explained.

"Well what are we waiting for, let's leap to it," Omi said.

"Jump to it," Kimiko corrected.

"That too."

"I think young monks that perhaps the best course of action would be for us both to get a good nights rest," Master Fung said.

Kimiko let out a grateful sigh, she was pooped but she didn't want to the first one to opt for a good night's rest.

"But Master Fung, as we speak, Rai is probably out there finding," Omi protested.

"Ah but luckily for us, Rai has no idea of where to find Wuya, just like we have no idea where to find him. We have better hopes of finding him if we are well rested," Master Fung said kindly but firmly.

Omi pouted while Clay and Kimiko let out a sigh of relief; they both knew that Master Fung had just saved them from a night of aimless wondering, trying to find Rai.

"Very well, we will start looking for him in the morning," Omi said.

"That's the spirit," Dojo said, "And if anyone wants me I'll hiding under Master Fung's bed until Rai is trapped again."

Dojo was about to run for it when Clay grabbed him.

"Whoa there, lil buddy, you're a part of this team so you're coming with us," Clay said.

"Are you crazy?! I am not going to be with in 20 miles of him."

"Come on Dojo," Kimiko said slightly frustrated, "We have faced world damning creatures before, including you when you got Wu crazy, why is this one so much worse?"

"Rai is so much worse because…" Dojo paused for effect, "he eats dragons."

Everyone stared blankly at Dojo.

"Is that it?" Omi asked.

"'Is that it?'! My life is in danger and all you can say 'Is that it?'" Dojo cried out.

"Dojo, you're the only one who knows Rai and we can't beat him if we don't have the info," Kimiko informed him.

"Doesn't the fact he may eat me matter to any of you?"

"Well Dojo how can we put this?" Clay said, "You rarely help us fight, when danger appears you run, hide or let out a girly scream and you just made us fight a demon with no idea of what he could do."

"Your point is?" Dojo asked not liking where this was heading.

"Our point is that you're coming with us whether you want to or not and since you are more concerned about your own safety we won't have to worry about it," Kimiko said flatly.

At that the Wudai warriors wished Master Fung good night and left him to console a whimpering Dojo.

* * *

The young monks walked to the sleeping quarters until Omi walked of in the direction of the library. 

"Uh partner the sleeping quarters aren't that way."

"I am well aware of that but I am not going to sleep yet."

"But Master Fung said that we would wait until morning to go searching for Rai," Kimiko protested.

"Ah but he also said that with knowledge comes power and if I am to defeat this demon I must become more powerful," Omi said before running off.

Kimiko just shook her head, _that boy is seriously in need of an off switch_. Clay and Kimiko walk back to there sleeping quarters. Kimiko turned to Clay.

"So you think this guy is going to go down easily?" Kimiko asked.

Clay tilted his hat up slightly and scratched his chin.

"Well I reckon he is going to be just as hard as any of the other Heylin critters that got loose," he answered, "he may have gotten the drop on us before but that was because we didn't know what we were up against."

"So you think next time is going to be different?"

"You betcha, we'll just do what we always do; give him a one-two and make him cry uncle."

Kimiko sighed; she just hoped that they could get this over with quickly. It was bad enough that Wuya had a human although weakened form again, the last thing they needed was for her to have a competent ally.

* * *

Rai walked silently through the temple. It was late so every one was asleep. So far he hadn't found the spear or anything else except the sleeping quarters, not that he was complaining. He got to see the cute Wudai warrior, Kimiko he thinks her name was, sleeping. It would have been a pretty sight if you could ignore the large puddle of drool that had formed beside her head. But still, at least she wasn't snoring like her strange hat wearing friend. Rai walked into a room with lots of books and scrolls, he guessed this was their library. 

_Well since I've got time until sunrise I might as well start seeing what I've missed these last 1500 years. _

Walking to the nearest bookshelf, Rai pulled out a random book and read the title.

_Ancient guide to Females…hmm maybe I'll read it later for a laugh. _

He pulled out another.

_Ancient guide to foot care._

He pulled out another.

_Ancient guide to tea preparation._

And another.

_Ancient guide to gardening…Argh! Maybe it wouldn't be so hard to find the right book is this place if they didn't start every title with Ancient!_

Frustrated Rai threw the book over his shoulder; he heard a thud and a slight moan. Rai turned round to see Omi the bald wonder sleeping at a table with his face on a book. Rai smirked; _well glad to see I'm not the only one who finds these books boring._

He walked over to Omi and the pulled the book out from under his head, earning a rather satisfying thud with Omi's head collided with the table. Rai read the title.

_Complete idiot's guide to Heylin villains…well at least it hasn't got Ancient in the title. _

He flipped through the pages and until he found someone familiar.

_Wuya…Heylin witch…enemy of Dashi…blah blah blah…trapped by Dashi 548 AD…favourite flower lily… whoa hold up! Trapped?!_

Rai flipped over a page to get more details.

_Wuya was defeated by Dashi after a great battle and sealed in a magic puzzle box. After this Dashi went on to build the Xiaolin Temple. For more information, read Complete idiot's guide to Xiaolin Heroes._

Rai closed the book. He absently touched the medallion round his neck as the gears in his head started to turn.

Things just got interesting.


	3. Soup

**Author's note: Here it is, I hope you like it. **

Kimiko got up with a yawn. She had had a reasonably undisturbed sleep. She heard Clay was still snoring but that was expected, she always got up a bit before him so that she wouldn't have to wait for the shower. After she had washed her self she got dressed and headed to the kitchen. As she headed down the corridor to the kitchen she heard a strange melody. It sounded both haunting and beautiful. Kimiko soon realised that it was someone whistling and was being accompanied by kitchen noises.

_Who's up at this hour?_

She pulled out the Star Hanabi. Since Jack had attacked the temple with a legion of monkeys, Kimiko made sure to always have Wu nearby by for quick use. She stepped cautiously into the kitchen and almost dropped it; it was Rai.

He was in front of the stove; obviously cooking something. His outer robe was lying over a chair, leaving him wearing a green sleeveless shirt. He was whistling to himself the same hauntingly beautiful tune. Kimiko was about to demand what he was doing when her nose was greeted by an extremely appetising smell. This coupled with the tune he was whistling dazed her slightly. Rai moved slightly to side to reveal a steaming pot. He finally turned face her.

"Good morning," He said cheerfully, "soup's almost ready, don't worry I made enough for everyone."

He turned back to the pot and used a spoon to taste the soup; he made an approving nod and stirred it a bit more. Kimiko, not sure how to react to having a demon in their kitchen making soup, held up the Star Hanabi, ready for anything.

"You know I haven't poisoned the soup and last time I checked a soup spoon isn't a weapon," Rai said calmly, "so if you don't mind, could you please stop pointing the Star Hanabi at my head?"

Kimiko looked at him suspiciously.

"Alright," she said as she pocketed the Star, "just don't try anything."

"Wouldn't dream of it, would you mind setting the table though?"

Kimiko raised an eyebrow but did as she was asked, best to play along with it for now until she finds out what he wants. She set the table for four, having made a mental note to include places for Clay and Omi. When that was done she saw Rai carrying the pot over to the table. She sat down at her usual place and Rai sat across from her. He took Kimiko's bowl and poured soup into it. He then poured soup into his bowl. She look at the soup uncertainly, was it safe or had he lied about poisoning it? Seemingly answering her question, Rai lifted his bowl to his lips and drank it. Not wanting to seem rude, Kimiko followed suit and was immediately glad she did. It was incredible; rich, creamy and heated herself up as it went down. She kept drinking until the bowl was empty, she put the bowl down, and enjoyed the brief warm and fuzzy feeling she got from the soup.

"That was great," she told Rai.

Rai smiled sincerely.

"I'm glad you like it, please help yourself, there's plenty."

Not needing a second invitation, Kimiko quickly filled her bowl again. This time she was a bit slower in drinking it. When Rai finished his bowl, he turned to Kimiko again.

"I never thanked you for releasing me," Rai said softly.

Kimiko paused.

"How do you know that I was the one who released you," Kimiko asked.

"Well firstly, you were the one who had been holding the spear; secondly you left a fire ball floating above my head."

"Oh right," Kimiko said sheepishly.

"So I say thank you."

"…er you're welcome," Kimiko replied, not sure what to say to a demon who had just thanked her for releasing him.

"So what do you and the other Wudai Warriors do anyway?" Rai asked as he stood up to get him something from the fruit bowl.

"Oh you know, find Sheng Gong Wu, fight great evil, that sort of thing," Kimiko said off-handed.

She instantly covered her mouth, she wasn't supposed to being giving information to a demon.

"Sounds like fun," Rai said.

Before anything more could be said, the voices of Clay and Omi were heard.

"All I'm saying is that maybe yer head wouldn't hurt if ya hadn't fallen asleep with yer head on a table."

"Perhaps you are correct, Clay, I will contemplate it."

"Omi, the only plate I'm interested in this time o' morning is the one my breakfast is on."

Clay and Omi walked into the kitchen. They paused and sniffed.

"Hmm, something smells awfully good," Clay said.

They followed the smell to the table, neither of them realising Rai was there.

"Kimiko has prepared breakfast for us," Omi said proudly, "I see that she has realised her duties as a girl."

Clay quickly brought his hat down over Omi's head.

"Layoff lil buddy," Clay said sternly, "Though it was mighty decent of ya to make us soup."

"I'm not the one who made it," Kimiko answered.

"That would be me," Rai answered, having gotten an apple.

"Well thank you Rai," Omi said and then paused, "RAI?!"

Omi and Clay went into fighting positions. Rai just rolled his eyes.

"And breakfast had been going so well," Rai muttered.

"Rai the demon, surrender now and we will not be forced to use…er…force on you," Omi said threateningly.

Rai replied, "As much fun as it would be to bounce that round head of yours off of the wall, I have gone through the effort of making you guys soup. Etiquette would dictate that you listen to what I have to say before opening hostilities."

Omi scoffed.

"Like any of us would be foolish enough to drink that demon brew you have made, isn't that right my friends?"

Omi turned to see Clay pouring him self a bowl of soup.

"Uh sorry, ya say something?" Clay asked.

"CLAY!!"

"Chill Omi, the soup is fine," Kimiko said, "in fact it's really good."

"I will not fall his tricks," Omi said defiantly, crossing his arm.

The aroma caught his nose again and his stomach rumbled, instantly weakening his resolve.

"Alright I will have some soup but I will not enjoy it."

Omi poured himself some soup and took a sip. He then downed the rest in one gulp.

"I did not enjoy that," He said in attempted rebellion, "may I have some more please?"

"Help your self," Rai replied as he poured him self another bowl, having finished the apple.

Clay, who had downed three bowls worth of soup in a minute, looked at Rai.

"So what do ya want?" He asked.

Rai kept a straight face as he answered.

"I want to take your Shen Gong Wu, enslave the temple, claim Kimiko as my concubine, take over the world, cause ten thousand years of darkness and eat a box of cute little kittens."

Rai took a sip of soup, he then realised that the monks were slowly reaching for their Wu.

"For goodness sake, it was a joke," Rai said, clearly irritated, "honestly you would think that a temple founded by Dashi would at least have a sense of humour."

The monks looked on blankly.

"Alright then why are you really here?" Kimiko asked.

"I want to help," Rai answered.

"Help with what?" Kimiko asked.

"Oh you know, finding Shen Gong Wu, fighting great evil, all those fun things you guys do."

"Why would the apprentice of Wuya want to help us?" Clay asked.

"Well you guys did release me," Rai answered, "I may be a demon but I am aware of gratitude."

The monks looked at each other, this was unexpected.

"Besides," Rai continued, "the world I came from no longer exists; the only things remaining from my time are the Shen Gong Wu and that flatulent worm you call a temple dragon. If I am going to find a place in this new world I have to start somewhere and this temple seems as good a place as any."

"The fella does have a point," Clay reasoned.

"So you would denounce your apprenticeship to Wuya?" Omi asked.

"Well that I can't do," Rai said regretfully, "she is still my master and if she came back I would have to serve her. But lucky for us, Dashi locked Wuya away in a puzzle box."

Clay and Kimiko gave each other nervous glances, so Rai had somehow found out that Wuya had been locked away but not that she had gotten out.

"Wait, aren't you going to go look for her then?" Kimiko asked.

"I said she was my master, I never said I was loyal to her," Rai answered.

Kimiko frowned, wasn't that the opposite of what Dojo had said?

"The bottom line is that I offer my services to the temple in exchange room and board as well as education on the new world," Rai finished.

Omi looked on cockily.

"And why do you think we would need the help of a demon?" He asked.

"I have abilities that might be useful to the temple," Rai explained.

"What skills could you have that the temple does not?"

"Well for one, I can fight."

Rai knew he had struck a nerve when he saw the veins pop out in all three monks' foreheads.

"Whoops, didn't know it was a sore point," Rai said.

"We are capable warriors," Omi said angrily.

"Of course you are," Rai said, his voice dripping with sarcasm, "I was especially impressed by your leopard strike."

Clay bet his fist on the table.

"Listen buddy, I don't like yer tone."

Rai shrugged.

"Fair enough. As I was saying, I have abilities that could help the temple. I'm not going to divulge them right now but if we were working together, you would probably find them out soon enough."

"How do we know that this isn't a trick," Kimiko asked, this wouldn't be the first time they had been deceived.

"You have my word," Rai answered, "not much I know but it's all I'm willing to give."

"Well, ya see we have a saying in Texas," Clay said, "never trust a snake that already bit ya."

Rai looked on at the three monks. While Clay and Omi looked with complete distrust, Kimiko looked on with uncertainty. Rai sighed and realised that even if Kimiko wanted Rai to stay she would be voted out.

"So your answer is no?" he asked.

"It is a most definite no," Omi answered, "we would never accept help from a demon."

Rai finished his soup and stood up. He the robe off the chair and put it back on, tying it up with his sash.

"Very well, we'll be in touch in case you change your mind. Since I cooked, you three can clean. Bye."

Rai gave a quick wave and walked out of the door. The three looked at each other.

"Now that was odder cousin Betty's socks,' Clay muttered.

"Indeed," Omi replied.

Kimiko looked at the door way that Rai had walked through.

_Had he meant what he said? Did he really want to help us or was it just a trick?_

She was brought out of her thoughts when Master Fung ran in.

"Young monks," he gasped, "the Spear of Dashi has been stolen."


	4. Trinkets

**Author's note: Hi, sorry about the hold up but I got sick. Anyway here you go.**

Master Fung sat quietly as he listened to the warriors explain what Rai had said.

"This is intriguing," he muttered before taking a sip of the soup.

"Not to sound disrespectful but I'd say delicious is a better way to describe it," Clay said, full attention still on the soup, "Ya think we can ask Rai for the recipe before we turn him back into a statue?"

"And how do you think we'll do that without the spear?!" Dojo asked, clearly on the verge of a nervous breakdown, "The one way to beat him and now it's gone."

"Now now, there are many ways to win a battle. When one door closes another is sure to open," Master Fung told him peacefully.

Kimiko nibbled her lip before speaking.

"Don't you guys think maybe we were a little quick to turn down Rai's offer?"

Omi and Dojo stared at Kimiko as if she had developed a second head, Master Fung and Clay simply raised an eyebrow.

"I'm just thinking that it would be an easier way to keep an eye on him," Kimiko added quickly, "I mean isn't the saying keep your friends close but your enemies' closer?"

Dojo looked at Kimiko suspiciously.

"And how close would you want Rai to be, hm?" he asked.

"Dojo," Master Fung scolded, "now is not the time for accusations. Kimiko makes a very good point. However if Rai shows interest in staying at the temple then perhaps this is the last place he should be."

"Yes you are right Master Fung," Omi said, "we must not let Rai in the temple for as an apprentice of Wuya he is evil and devious. Who knows what evil and devious schemes he is thinking as we speak?

* * *

_I wonder if I'd look good in spandex._

Rai was looking through the fashion edition of a book series called "An ancient creature's guide to the modern world" that he had 'borrowed' the temple. So far he had learned that he was in dire need of a fashion upgrade.

_Hmmm, the bright colours might clash._

He skimmed through a few more pages until he came to something that sparked his interest.

_Sunglasses._

_Devices similar spectacles, they are worn to protect eyes from harsh light or to achieve a desirable state known as "coolness". Further research has shown this state has nothing to do with temperature._

Rai looked at the pictures; styles seemed vary as well as how dark they were. Some were so dark that you couldn't see the person's eyes at all. Rai scratched bridge of his nose thoughtfully.

_Hmmm, don't know bout being "cool" but it would be easier to blend in if people couldn't see my eyes. Now where can I get a pair?_

He looked over the edge from the building he was on. He had taken the courage and found that the "city" he had seen last night wasn't so bad (he had learned about cities from the book series as well). Everything was just bigger and busier than old times. He saw a lot of people and many stores but no place selling sunglasses. He moved to the other side looked down to see an alleyway. He was about to go look somewhere else when he noticed two thugs walk into the alley. One was wearing all white and was bald except for a cue on the back of he's head. The other was wearing all black and had hair down to his back. To make it all the better, both were wearing sunglasses.

_I guess this won't be so hard after all._

He leapt down from the roof and landed beside the thugs.

"How much for your sunglasses," Rai asked, trying to be humane about this.

The thugs were at first shocked, not sure where he had come from, but soon went back to playing tough guy.

"Beat it kid, we have more important business to attend to," the thug in black said.

"By standing in a rat filled alleyway?" Rai asked, "Look I'll leave you two in peace soon enough. I'm just looking a pair of sunglasses."

"Well look somewhere else," the thug in white threatened, "these are expensive."

Rai reached into his robes and pulled out what looked to him like just some rolled up pieces of paper.

_Paper money? Just when I thought this new time couldn't get any weirder..._

He flung the roll of money to the thugs; they shared shock expressions when they saw how much it was.

"If that's not enough, I've plenty more where that came from," Rai told them.

The thugs looked at each other and then looked around for cops, when they saw there were none around; they smirked and walked Rai into a corner.

"Well then, I suggest that you hand over all of your money," the thug in black threatened, "or else we will be forced to take it from you."

Rai raised an eyebrow.

"You're robbing me?"

"Think of it as health insurance," the thug in black explained.

"I was trying to do a fair and legitimate trade and instead you want to resort to violence?" Rai asked.

"We're good with that," the thug in white answered.

Rai sighed and cracked his knuckles.

"Alright, but could who ever is keeping record please note that I tried to be civil about this."

* * *

Dojo was busy hiding under Master Fung's bed when started twitching. 

"WHOA! SADDLE UP KIDS! WE HAVE A LIVE ONE!" he shouted.

* * *

Rai examined both sunglasses, trying to decide which pair to take.

"Now which pair do you think?" Rai asked the two thugs.

When he didn't get an answer he lifted his butt and dropped it again, eliciting a groan from the semi conscious thug in white he was sitting on.

"You're right; I'll just take both pairs, just in case I loss one."

He put on a pair just in time for him to go rigid and his eyes to glow momentarily.

"The Imo Gazer has revealed it self," He said to no-one in particular.

When the moment passed he paused to think about what just happened.

_Must be a new feature. Oh well might as well go have a look since my new senses are telling me that it's nearby._

Rai stood up and started to walk off.

"Well it's been fun, let's do it again some time."

He noticed the roll of money he had offered for the sunglasses. He shrugged before placing it in the open, twitching hand of the thug in black.

"Here, go buy your self some brains."

Rai then walked off.

* * *

"Let me get this straight," the antiques dealer said, "this telescope is an antique piece of art that is 1500 years old and still in wonderful condition. It is also going in to private auction, is predicted to go for $100, 000 US and you want me just to give is to you three?" 

"That is correct," Omi said with a big smile.

The dealer simply said "Get out."

An embarrassed Clay and Kimiko dragged Omi out of the antique store.

"So where is the Imo Gazer?" Dojo asked.

"In one of the most famous antique stores in Hong Kong with a $100, 000 price tag," Kimiko answered.

"I knew the Wu were old," Clay said, "but I never figured they would class as antiques."

"We even asked nicely," Omi said depressively.

"Well go in there and ask again," Dojo ordered, "the Imo-Gazer…"

"Yea we know," Kimiko interrupted, "the Imo-Gazer put who ever are in its sight to sleep and if it fell in the wrong hands it could cause real trouble."

"Then go in there and get it," Dojo ordered.

"How do we that?" Clay asked, "That telescope is worth a boat-load of green backs."

"Well watch and learn," a familiar voice said.

They turned to see a teenage boy in a three piece suit with slicked and dark glasses walk in the antique store. The warriors followed him as he walked up to the counter. The dealer was inspecting a shelf that was behind the counter. The boy in the suit cleared his throat, causing the storekeeper to turn to him.

"What do you want?" the dealer asked.

"Well for starters, some decent service," the boy replied.

"Listen, I only deal with adults," The dealer told him, "come back when you're older."

The boy grabbed the front of the dealer's shirt and pulled him forward.

"No you listen, you have no idea who I am and for that I already find you pitiful," the boy said evenly, "however I will forgive that, what I won't forgive is you not offering the best service possible, do I make my self clear?"

The dealer nodded nervously, the boy smirked before letting go of the dealer's shirt. The dealer took a more courteous poster and tone of voice.

"How may I help you today sir?" the dealer asked.

"I am interested in pieces from the North and South dynasties," the boy informed him.

"Well we have many exquisite ones from that," the dealer began before he noticed the Warriors were back in the store, "hey, I told you to get out!"

The boy snapped his fingers in front of the dealers face.

"Eyes on me when I'm being served, got it?"

"Of course Sir, my apologies," the dealers replied, "as I was saying we have many exquisite pieces from that period."

"How about that?" the boy asked, indicating the Imo Gazer.

"Ah, you have an excellent eye," the dealer said as he brought it to the counter, "this piece has been dated to have the come from the Song dynasty. It is in remarkable condition for its age."

"How much?" the boy asked.

"I'm afraid, it's not for sale," the dealer explained, "it is going up for private auction."

"How much do you think you will get for it on private auction?" the boy asked.

"It is predicted to sell for $100, 000 US," the dealer replied smugly.

"Well what would you say if I offered you twice that much, up front, in cash?"

"Well I would say that you are a man after my own heart," the dealer replied, "but the question I have to ask you is are you that sort of man?"

The boy pulled out a strange looking bag. He then tipped it over the counter, letting a large pile of American money. The shop echoed the sound of four jaws hitting the floor.

"I very much doubt that you have a heart," the boy said, "but I never make an offer I can't follow through. Do we have a deal?"

"Of course we have a deal," the dealer said excitedly, "and if I could interest you in some vases…"

"I have no interest in vases," the boy replied curtly, taking the Imo Gazer.

"Of course not, thank you for your custom," the dealer said.

The boy then walked out without another word. The Wudai warriors followed him, once they reached the street he turned face them.

"Can I help you?" the boy asked.

Kimiko stepped forward, decided to try and turn on the charm.

"Um…yeah… I know this may sound crazy but that telescope is actually…"

"A Shen Gong Wu called the Imo Gazer," the boy finished, "and you are from the Xiaolin Temple, charged with responsibility of collecting and protecting the Wu from the forces of evil."

"Uh…yea…so can I please have the Imo Gazer?" Kimiko asked, not sure how to react.

"Since you asked so nicely," the boy replied, handing the Imo-gazer to Kimiko.

Kimiko almost dropped it.

"Wait you just paid two hundred grand for it and you're giving it to me just like that?"

"Well Kimiko, I could ask for a kiss but you would probably hit me."

_Oh, what cheek! Wait! How did he know my name?_

It suddenly clicked.

"Rai?!"

Rai smirked, took off his sunglasses and shook his head briefly, causing his hair to stand on end once more.

"Well done you got it in one, though you're a little slow on the draw today, aren't you firefly?" Rai said teasingly.

Omi, suddenly realising who it was, squeezed in between Kimiko and Rai. Kimiko, not liking the invasion of personal space, stepped back, giving Clay a chance to place him self between Rai and Kimiko as well.

"Not another step closer to Kimiko, you demon," Omi ordered.

"You mean that we have to go through this again?" Rai asked, "I told you that I want to help."

"And we told you that we do not accept help from demons," Omi answered.

Rai let out a sigh and sat on a near by fire hydrant.

"What is so hard to believe about a demon that was locked away by Dashi and that worked for Wuya wanting to help out the good guys?"

Rai paused for a moment.

"I just answered my own question, didn't I?"

"Alright answer this," Clay demanded, "where did ya get the money?"

Rai shrugged and pulled out the bag he had used in the shop.

"This is my Hern Tsai bag; it can make as much money in what ever currency I want," Rai explained.

"And the suit?" Kimiko asked.

Rai took hold of one of his sleeves and snapped his fingers. With a 'poof' it transformed back into his old robes.

"My robes are made from Hu li jing fur," Rai explained, "It can change form at will. I told you I had abilities that would be useful."

Omi stepped forward and pointed his finger threateningly at Rai.

"Demon, I demand that you return the spear of Dashi that you stole from the temple."

"And on what grounds do you accuse me," Rai asked.

"You are a demon," Omi stated.

Rai stood up and looked offended.

"You accuse me on the sole grounds that I am a demon? That is hurtful and prejudice and just for that I'm gonna this."

Rai kicked the latch of the hydrant. A jet of water shot out from the hydrant and sent the warriors flying. He looked at the hydrant in disbelief, he had read about them but he hadn't thought that would actually work. Kimiko on the other hand had managed to end up on the bottom of a Wudai Warrior pile up. Rai looked down and saw the Imo Gazer lying on the ground. He picked it up and placed it in front of Kimiko's face.

"You know, it wouldn't kill your friends to learn some manners," Rai said to her, "but fighting like this just might."

Rai walked off, leaving Kimiko to dig her way out.

**Authors note: here are just a few explanations for those who are interested (I apologies now if any of my information incorrect):**

**The North and South Dynasties is the period the events of Dashi took place, the Song dynasty was the dynasty that was in place in the South during that time based on the date Dojo gave for burying the star hanibi in "big as texas" (549 AD).**

**Hu li jing is the name of Chinese shape shifting fox spirits, similar to that of Japanese Kitsune.**

**Hern tsai is Chinese for**** money obtained readily, with little effort and, often, illegally.**


	5. Skills

The three monks rode Dojo silently.

"Well that could've gone better," Clay muttered.

"Don't be so hard on your selves," Dojo enthused, looking where he was flying, "I mean you got the Imo gazer."

"Yeah only after Rai went in and bought it for us," Kimiko replied before clicking her back in, letting out a small moan of pain as she did.

"Kimiko, did Rai hurt you?" Omi asked, clearly concerned.

"No, you and Clay hurt me when you landed on top of me!!"

"Oh right," Omi said sheepishly, "well we would not have landed on you if Rai had not attacked us."

"Omi, you provoked him," Kimiko replied, "If you hadn't accused him of stealing the Spear of Dashi, he wouldn't have done that."

"Kimiko I know without a doubt that he is the one who took the spear."

"He's already told us that he didn't take it, what more proof do you need?"

"Kimiko, as a demon and as Wuya's apprentice, Rai is no doubt an expert at lying."

"Now now ya two, don't start a fight," Clay interjected, "And speaking of fighting, where were ya when Rai showed up Dojo? One minute yer there, the next yer no where to be seen."

Dojo became very nervous.

"Well you see, I had found a coin on the side of the road and I decided to go return it to its proper owner."

Dojo cowered slightly at the sound teeth grinding angrily.

"Oh come on guys, what use could I have been."

"Well ya can start being useful and tell us about some tricks Rai may have left up his sleeve," Clay told him.

"The thing is, I haven't actually seen that much of Rai in action," Dojo said shamefully.

"You were too scared to be near him back then as well?" Kimiko asked

"Yeah and Dashi got sick of me hiding under his shirt while he fought so he told me to stay away after a while."

"Well what do you know?" Omi asked.

"Well I do know the broad brush strokes; Rai has wind powers, he is agile and likes to make full use of his environment when he fights. Dashi commented on his resourcefulness from time to time as well as the fact that he doesn't seem to need sleep."

"He doesn't need sleep?" Omi asked.

"Not from what we could tell," Dojo answered, "that's all I remember."

"Well it's better then nothing I guess," Clay answered.

Dojo started shaking.

"Hold on kids it looks like today is going to be a two for one special."

* * *

Rai was busy making him self comfortable in a tree. This area was secluded so he didn't have to worry visitors and he felt that a nice long nap was in order. He was about to doze off when strange sensation washed over him, causing him go rigid and fall out of the tree, into a bush. 

"This just in," Rai said as he dug him self out of the bush, "The Horde of Haiku has just revealed it self and this reporter can officially see him self getting sick of this new ability very quickly."

* * *

The Warriors landed on the Great Wall of China. 

"This will be a walk in the forest," Omi stated.

"That's "walk in the park", melon brain."

The Warriors looked up to see Jack make his entrance on his heli-pack.

"Hey Jack, where were you?" Kimiko asked, "A Wu went off earlier this morning you weren't there? Did mommy forget to wake you up?"

"No," Jack said defensively before muttering, "she was out shopping and forgot to set my alarm clock."

"Well if it would make ya feel better we'd be more than happy to clean yer clock for ya," Clay said slamming his fist into his palm.

"I'd like to see you try," Jack taunted, "Jack-bots att…"

Before he could finish the command a black streak shot in and pounced Jack from behind. He fell face down on a ground. The Warriors were shocked when they saw Rai crouching on Jack's back.

"That was easy," Rai remarked, "shall we stand you back up so we can try it again."

"Rai, get off of him this instant," Omi ordered angrily, "he is **our **foe so **we** get to be the ones who knock him to the ground."

Rai looked at Jack in disbelief.

"This is the "great evil" you guys fight? But he's so frail and sickly looking."

Rai poked Jack in the head a couple of times, hoping to get a reaction. _Anything_ so that he didn't look quite so pitiful.

"Stop that!" Jack said "Who are you?"

"Oh right we haven't been introduced, I'm Rai; demon of the wind, lover of the ladies and kicker of the butt," Rai told him with a brief nod of the head, "and you are?"

"I am Jack Spicer, future ruler of the universe, builder of the robots and …er…eater of the pudding."

Rai cocked an eyebrow.

"You forgot talker of the lame," Rai informed Jack before getting off of him.

"Hey! Show some respect," Jack demanded.

Rai took no notice, being more intrigued in the colour of Jack's skin.

"You're so pale," Rai noted, "Are you undead or something?"

Jack was about to reply but then paused for a moment, mulling the concept over.

"You know I like the way that sounds," Jack finally stated.

Jack went into one of his villain poses.

"Jack Spicer; Undead Overlord."

Jack did a dramatic pause while Rai pulled out a knife.

"Well in that case, I'm going to have to cut your head off so that you can be laid to rest."

"AHHHH! I'M HUMAN! I'M HUMAN!" Jack shrieked.

He tried to make a run for it but he tripped over something. He looked back saw that he had tripped over the Wu they had been looking for. Rai saw this as well and made a jump for it. Both he and Jack touched it at the same time.

"Aha, Rai, I challenge you to a Xiaolin Showdown," Jack said triumphantly.

"A what?" Rai asked, clearly confused.

"You know, a Xiaolin Showdown."

"If I knew I wouldn't be asking now would I," Rai said testily before turning the Xiaolin Warriors, "feel free to jump in with an explanation at any time."

Kimiko was about to explain when Dojo clamped her mouth shut.

"Don't tell him anything," Dojo hissed before letting go of Kimiko's mouth.

Rai turned back to Jack.

"Mind cluing me in? Dimwits on parade over there are being a bit slow today."

Jack burst out laughing.

"'Dimwits on parade' that is genius, I've got to remember that one."

"Some time this century, girly man."

Jack stopped laughing.

"Alright, wise guy, a Xiaolin Showdown is a contest," Jack explained, "each person wagers one of their Wu and the winner of the showdown gets all of the Wu."

"Ok, that seems straight forward enough," Rai answered, "what's the contest?"

Jack pointed the next tower of the great wall.

"We will race along the Great Wall and the first one to get to that tower wins. I wager the Crouching Cougar against your…er…what Wu you got?"

Rai thought for a moment before sticking his hand behind his back.

"I wager the Spear of Dashi," Rai answered, pulling it out from behind his back.

Kimiko let out a gasp. Omi had been right.

"Alright, let's go, XIAOLIN SHOWDOWN."

The field change that occurred wasn't that dramatic by Showdown standards. The sky changed colour, the wall got longer and the Xiaolin Warriors found themselves on a floating platform over looking the showdown.

"I told you that Rai had the Spear," Omi told Kimiko triumphantly.

"Well he ain't gonna have it for much longer," Clay answered.

"Go Jack!!" Dojo cheered.

"What're ya doing?" Clay asked.

"Simple, it will be a lot easier to steal the Spear from Jack than from Rai," Dojo answered.

"But what do ya think Rai is going to do to ya when he finds out ya were cheering against him?" Clay asked.

When Dojo clicked onto that, he quickly hid under Clay's hat again.

Jack enlarged the Crouching Cougar into its wheeled form. He jumped onto the saddle and shouted "Gong Yi Tampai". He started the "engine" and shot off down the race track. Rai stared for a moment.

_I guess that means go. Should I give him a bit of a head start? Nah, wouldn't want to hurt his pride when I beat him._ At that, Rai gave chase.

* * *

Jack let loss his "evil" laugh as he speed down the track. 

"Mawhahaha! This showdown is in the bag," Jack declared, "Mawhahaha…ack!"

Jack burst into a coughing fit.

"That's what you get for forcing an evil laugh," Rai told him.

"Who said I forced it?"

"It was obvious," Rai answered simply, "you might find it easier if you started with an evil chuckle and then work your way up."

"Thanks I'll try to remember that."

Jack then did a double take when he realised that Rai was running effortlessly along side the Crouching Cougar.

"How are you doing that?" Jack asked.

"It's called my wind sprint," Rai explained, "Well actually this is more my wind jog. Or is it my wind stroll? I really should have given it a number scale."

The warriors looked on amazed. The Crouching Cougar wasn't the fastest of the Wu but Rai running along side it wasn't human. Dojo stuck out his head from Clay's hat.

"I've just remembered another one of Rai's abilities," He said proudly.

"Does it have anything to do with running fast?" Clay asked.

"Why yes, how did you know?"

Jack soon got over the shock.

"So you can run, big deal," Jack taunted, "JACK BOTS, ATTACK!"

Rai came to a skidding stop when a group of metal flying creatures came at him.

_Well at least it isn't those undead jellyfish-gerbils again, _Rai let out a shudder at the memory.

He leap-frogged the first Jack-bot and hooked his feet on the next one's 'head'. Rai back-flipped; ripping off its 'head' and sending it flying straight through the first Jack-bot. He then grabbed another Jack-bot's arm and smashed it into two more. Not wanting to waste any more time, he used a Jack-bot as a step and leapt into the air. The remaining Jack-bots flew up to attack.

"HEYLIN THUNDER CLAP!" Rai shouted, clapping his hands together.

A shock wave erupted from his hands, destroying all the Jack-bots in its path. Rai hit the ground at a run to avoid the falling debris. Rai soon caught up with Jack.

"How did you do that?" Jack asked in shock.

"You're really not getting this whole demon of the wind concept, are you?" Rai asked.

Rai pulled out a disk that had been part of a Jack-bots head.

"You left this lying around."

Rai hurled the disc at Jack. It connected with Jack's face, knocking him off the Crouching Cougar and off of the wall, leaving Rai to win the race and showdown. Everything returned to normal leaving Rai standing triumphantly with all three Wu. He looked down the wall to where Jack had fallen.

"Not much of a fighter, but he sure knows how to make a quick escape," he said with a smirk.

Kimko walked to Rai, fists clenched and eyes flaming.

"Now, now Kimiko," Dojo called out, "don't do anything **I'll **regret later."

Rai put away the Spear of Dashi and turned to Kimiko.

"Next time would you guys be a little quicker on the info? It kinda looked bad not knowing what that momma's boy was talking about."

Kimiko punched him right in the arm. Causing him to drop the other two Wu.

"What was that for?" Rai asked, rubbing his arm.

"You lied," Kimiko said, clearly angry.

"What did I lie about?" Rai asked.

"You said you didn't have the Spear of Dashi."

"I never said that," Rai answered, "I said it was hurtful and prejudice that I was being accused of stealing it just because I'm a demon, which it was. It would only have been lying if I denied having the Spear."

"You stole from us."

Rai shook his head.

"Fine, for a moment let's pretend that I'm in some way obligated adhere to your human morals; the only things keeping the temple from trapping me again is possession of the spear and the chance of having a clear shot. Did you honestly think I would take that risk."

Kimiko's fist flew in for another hit but this time Rai deflected the blow with his left hand and grabbed Kimiko by the throat with his right, all in one fluid motion. The grip on Kimiko's throat was gentle enough not restrict Kimiko's breathing but firm enough for her to notice.

"You're angry at me, I get it, but I'm not going to be treated like some punching bag," Rai warned, keeping his voice dangerously low, "the first hit is free but next will cost you. Got it?"

Not waiting for a response, Rai let go of Kimiko's throat. Instinctively, she raised her hand and placed it where Rai's had been. She suddenly didn't feel so eager to pick a fight. Omi and Clay ran up beside her.

"Now that I have your attention, hear me out," Rai told them, returning his voice to normal. "I would love to be able to walk away and never have to deal with anything to do with Dashi. Unfortunatly I told you guys that I wanted to help and I intend to keep my word on that. Not to mention that thanks to having that spear in me for so long whenever a Wu reveals it self I have a spasm and get the urge to go to where it is."

Kimiko nodded slightly, that certainly explained how Rai kept finding them.

"So how it stands I'm either going to be finding Wu with you guys or **against** you guys," Rai continued, "it's your choice."

The Warriors looked amongst themselves, trying to find an answer. It seemed like Rai now had reason to enter the Wu hunting game and considering what he had shown so far, he wasn't the kind of guy they wanted against them. Taking the lack of response as a no, Rai shrugged his shoulders.

"Alright, in that case I may go see if that Spicer guy is hiring," Rai said almost indifferently, "he obviously needs the help more than you do."

Rai turned round and started to walk off.

"Wait!" Kimiko said.

Rai turned back to face the warriors.

"Yes?"

Kimiko sent Clay and Omi a desperate looked. No matter how ticked off they were, the last thing they needed was for Rai to side with Jack.

"Very well you may help us," Omi conceded, "but only for now."

"WHAT!" Dojo shrieked before fainting.

"Great," Rai said, "I'll just go make myself at home."

Rai ran off before anymore could be said. Dojo woke up.

"You know I had the scariest dream; dreamt that you guys had accepted Rai's help."

"We kinda did," Clay told him.

At that Dojo passed out again.

**Authors note: Well I hope you enjoyed it. For those who are wondering, The Horde of Haiku is a**** scanner-like Shen Gong Wu from the card game that can translate any language or symbol.**

**For any of the readers who are artistically inclined (I know some of the reviewers also have deviant art accounts so I know there are a few), I would really like to see Demon Rai done visually. I feel bad asking this here but I can't draw to save my life and I didn't know where else to ask. So if any of you are interested I would love to see what people can come up with. **


	6. Dishes

**Authors note: Well here it is. Sorry about the delay. For those who didn't already know, I have been busy with exams the last two months which has stopped me from writing. But now it's over and I can return to my stories. Thank you for your patience. For those of you who lost faith, I may reach snags but I will finish any story that I start of no matter what, so don't worry I will not leave this story with out an end.**

**I hope this chapter is alright, it was a bit hard to write coming off of a hiatus. Let me know what you think of it.**

"Great, just great," Dojo said, "if it wasn't bad enough that we had that dragon muncher back, you three had to accept his help in Wu chasing."

"Come on little buddy, it's not like the wind whipper gave us much choice," Clay told him, "It was either him round up Wu with us or with Jack."

"Yes and while we do not trust Rai, if he is close to us we will be able to watch his movements and wait for an opportune moment to get the spear back," Omi said smugly, obviously proud of him self for coming up with such a scheme.

Kimiko just shook her head. Omi just wanted to sound as if it had all been here plan when actually he had been doing all he could to stop Rai from helping. When Dojo landed in the courtyard, Master Fung walked up to greet.

"I trust you return with the Imo-Gazer," Master Fung said kindly.

"Yes Master Fung," Omi said proudly, "and we have also gotten the horde of Haiku."

"All with out too much incident I hope."

Clay rubbed the back of his neck.

"Well ya see…"

They were interrupted by a monk running up to them.

"Master Fung," He said frantically, "we have an intruder."

Master Fung and the warriors followed the monk.

"Uh I think I left my nail clipper, under Master Fungs bed," Dojo muttered before running off into another direction.

Kimiko raced just behind the monk.

_Please don't be Rai._

_Please don't be Rai._

_Please don't be Rai._

The monk lead them into one of the dining rooms and there, sitting at the table, was Rai.

_Oh $#._

To one side, Kimiko saw a couple of monks with drawn bows. Rai either hadn't noticed them or didn't care because he busy helping him some egg rolls. When he noticed the warriors, he raised his hand in a brief wave.

"Hi guys, I was wondering when you would get here."

Master Fung raised a hand towards the monks, indicating for them to lower their bows before stepping towards Rai.

"What business do you have here," Master Fung asked calmly.

"Eating," Rai replied, taking a big bite of a dumpling.

"So I see, but why are you eating here?"

"Well seeing as I'll be staying here I might as well see if temple cooking is any good. I can't spend all my time cooking my own food around here."

"And would you be staying here?" Master Fung.

"Because your Dragons invited me," Rai replied.

Omi jumped in.

"Oh no we did not, that statement is bash."

"Whack," Kimiko corrected.

"We only agreed to let you aid us in finding Shen Gong Wu," Omi told Rai, "we never agreed to letting you stay in the temple."

Rai raised an eye brow.

"Well you would think that the two were part and partial."

"No they are not," Omi corrected, "we do not allow demons or thieves in our temple."

"Man, are you still in a tiff about the spear? Come on, I spent the last 1500 years with that blasted thing in my chest. Why all of a sudden do you now care about it being in my possession?"

"You mean you're the one that took the spear?" Master Fung asked.

"Yes I am but it was only out of self preservation," Rai answered, "I would be happy to return the spear to the temple."

"Then return it now!" Omi ordered.

"But only if you swore, on your honour as a monk of this temple, that you or anyone else on the Xiaolin side would not use it on me."

Omi opened his mouth but then stopped when he realised this was vow he couldn't make. He looked to his team but they were just as stumped. Either way the spear was useless to them. Rai gave a small triumphant smirk.

"That's what I thought."

Rai picked up a big bowl of noodles, talking between mouthfuls.

"I have set reasonable terms for the return of the spear, now unless you are willing to meet them I will be hanging on to it."

Omi fumed, knowing full well that he had been beaten.

"Shouldn't you guys at least try to be hospitable?" Rai asked, "I mean I did help you get those last two Wu."

Master Fung's gaze suddenly shifted back to his students.

"Is this true?"

The Wudai Warriors were a bit slow with their answers so Rai decided to 'help' them out.

"I paid for the Imo-Gazer then won the Horde of Haiku and the Crouching Cougar in a Showdown."

Master Fung raised an eyebrow at his students, silently asking them to verify these facts. They slowly nodded and Kimiko realised the trap they had walked into. Since Rai had helped the temple with no apparent personal gain, the temple was morally obligated to at least provide the food and shelter that he asked of them.

Master Fung finally said, "Very well you may stay here for now."

"Swell," Rai answered.

He emptied the bowl of noodles with one long suck and walked out of the dinning room in long strides as if he owned the place. Master Fung turned to his pupils.

"Please enlighten me as to what has taken place," Master Fung ordered.

Kimiko internally groaned. She was not looking forward to this.

No-one noticed a raven that had been sitting outside a nearby window fly off.

* * *

Chase Young was doing his Tai Chi practise, focusing mainly on calming techniques. Heavens knows he needed it, what with Wuya trying not only to sneak out for Shen Gong Wu twice in one day but also wanting to move their relationship forward to shudder cuddling. He was starting to remember why for the best part of 1500 years he had all women in his domain spend most of their time in cat form. But still Chase put up with Wuya's behaviour to a certain degree. As much pleasure as it would bring him to dispose of her in a gruesome manner; she had her uses, so long as she was kept under control. 

Chase was part way through completing the tortoise paints fence movement when he was interrupted by something landing on his shoulder. He didn't bother to threaten the raven because he knew that it was fully aware of what would happen if it needlessly wasted his Master's time. Chase held his pose while letting the Raven whisper into his ear. When the raven gave its message, Chase's eye's shot open.

"Show me," he ordered the raven, needing more proof than just the raven's word.

The Raven turned his head to the side so that Chase could look into his eye. When Chase saw the images, he knew the raven told the truth.

"Return to the Temple," Chase ordered, "Do not let him out of your sight."

The raven nodded before flying off, Chase snapped his finger, causing a tiger to appear out of the shadows.

"Keep watch over Wuya, under no circumstances must she be allowed to leave my domain."

The tiger bowed its head before disappearing back into the shadows.

Chase sat down in his chair, bringing his hands together in contemplation. This was a problem; even in her weakened state, Wuya had the potential to be a threat if she regained her apprentice. But while Rai holds allegiance with the Xiaolin Warriors, he can not be eliminated without incurring the wrath of the temple and of its allies. Chase was formidable but he wasn't stupid and he would not cause an outright war between him and the Xiaolin side over that accursed demon.

Chase nodded his head slightly when he came to a conclusion. There was nothing for it; he would to prevent Wuya from leaving his domain and wait for an opportunity to strike. From what the raven showed him, Rai was as much of a thorn as he was in the past so it won't take long for that opportunity to turn up.

* * *

Kimiko was pissed; not only did she have to endures a Fung lecture on accepting help from the enemy, Rai had also ate most of what had been their lunch and now there was a big pile of dirty dishes with her name on it that she had little part in creating. This would not stand. 

Kimiko walked over to where Rai was lying on the grass, looking at the clouds.

"Hey there firefly," Rai said, "What can I do ya for?"

"Do the dishes," Kimiko ordered.

Rai sat up.

"Excuse me?"

"You heard me; you ate most of the lunch so it's only fair that you do the dishes."

Rai stood up and looked Kimiko straight in the eye.

"I'm not some servant for you to order round…"

"But you are part of this temple now, get used to it," Kimiko interjected, "everyone here does their share in keeping this temple running and if you are going to stay here, you are going to do your part as well."

Rai didn't reply, he just turned round and walked off with out another word.

"HEY GET BACK HERE, I'M NOT FINISHED SPEAKING YET."

"Well I'm finished listening," Rai called back.

Kimiko stood there for a moment, but soon gave chase. _If that jerk thinks he can just walk away when I'm talking to him, he better think again._

She realised Rai was heading to the kitchen, probably to take more food. Kimiko stormed into the kitchen. She stopped dead when she saw Rai in front of the sink, doing something with the dishes that look strangely like cleaning.

"Uh, what are you doing?" Kimiko asked, not sure whether to believe her eyes.

"Doing the dishes," Rai answered, "just like you told me to".

Kimiko's mouth opened slightly in shock,

"You're doing the dishes..."

"Yep."

"Because I told you to."

"Well I'm certainly not doing this for fun," Rai answered.

Kimiko still couldn't get her head round what was happening.

"You, Rai, Heylin Demon of Wind, are doing the dishes…"

"And you, Kimiko, Xiaolin Dragon of Fire, are insulting both of us by talking like that."

That shut Kimiko up but didn't stop her staring. Rai, feeling her eyes on him, sighed and turned to face Kimiko.

"Look, there isn't much to understand; you made a compelling argument and I ceded the victory."

Kimiko put her hand up, trying to slow things down again.

"Wait, you're saying that I won the argument."

"Yes you did," Rai answered, "what were you expecting? A grand surrender and people singing praises of how 'the great and fair Kimiko made the savage and unconquerable Rai yield to her will'?"

Kimiko raised an eyebrow.

"Well kinda though I wouldn't say you yielded to my will nor would I call you savage and unconquerable," Kimiko replied.

"Yeah but who would want to read a story about you getting an easy going and generally agreeable chap to do his share in the chores?"

"Good point."

"I thought you'd agree," Rai said before lifting up a drying cloth, "mind lending a hand? This really works better if there is one person cleaning and one person drying."

Kimiko looked into Rai's cat like eyes uncertainly, there seemed to be a strange sincerity in this request. His eyes seemed to hide no agenda and yet by the way he asked it seemed as if he valued the company more than he valued the help. Kimiko shrugged but took the cloth and started to dry the dishes that Rai had already cleaned.

She then asked, "So would this go down as the tale of how the great and fair Kimiko succumbed to the will of the savage and unconquerable Rai?"

"That depends," Rai answered, "would I be able to convince you to wear a cute little servant's outfit?"

"Not on your life."

"Then no it wouldn't."

Rai went back to washing the dishing, whistling softly to himself that same hauntingly beautiful melody she had whistled before. Kimiko looked at this strange sight before continuing drying. Soon they got into a rhythm.

"You know Rai, for a demon you're not all that …well…_demonic_."

Kimiko thought she saw Rai pause briefly but it was so brief she couldn't be sure.

"Were you expecting someone who rants, roars, causes massive destruction and feeds on human flesh?" He asked.

"Well yeah I guess I was," Kimiko replied bashfully, "you mean you don't do that?"

"Nah, human flesh is too fattening," Rai answered, patting his stomach, "I'm watching my weight."

Kimiko blinked at Rai for a moment before giving a brief chuckle.

"Ok, I'll admit, that one was kinda funny," she told him.

Rai smiled at her.

"For a moment I was afraid that no-one in this place had a sense of humour. So is there a roster I can put my name on or am I going to have to wait for you to give me a job each time."

"You mean you'll help out?" Kimiko asked.

"Sure, I mean it's not like I haven't done chores before. Wuya made sure I got plenty of practice," Rai said.

"So what was it like? Being Wuya's apprentice?" Kimiko asked, she had never considered joining but she had always wondered what it was like on the other side.

"Truthfully? I hated it," Rai answered, "The training, the chores, the housework; you would think that I was more of servant than an apprentice. And don't get me started on the errands she made me run. Honestly, if I didn't know better I would have thought that she liked finding new people for me to tick off."

"Well if you didn't like it, why did you do what she said?" Kimiko asked.

"It's complicated," Rai answered, "actually that's a lie, it's not all that complicated but I just don't want to talk about it so can we conveniently change the topic?"

"Uh… sure if you want," Kimiko replied, taken aback by Rai's answer.

"So where are you from?" Rai asked, "You obviously weren't born in this temple."

Though it was the truth, Kimiko couldn't help but ask "What makes you say that?"

"Well you're lacking two things that every monk raised in a temple is expected to have."

"And they are?"

"A shaved head and a …uh…never mind."

"Well I'm from Tokyo."

"Where?"

Kimiko almost face palmed herself. The guy had been a statue for 1500 years, how the heck would he know where Tokyo is.

"It's in a place east of here, over the sea, called Japan."

"Land of the Rising Sun," Rai finished.

Kimiko raised an eyebrow.

"I saw the poster in your cubical," Rai explained, "So did you come here on one of those crazy contraptions, planes I think they are called."

"How do you know about planes, what's so crazy about them?" Kimiko asked.

"I read about them in a book," Rai answered, "And they are big metal things that act like birds and gain its power from something that explodes when lit. Am I the only one that thinks that's a bit unnatural?"

"And you would know about unnatural."

Rai gave a shrug.

"What can I say; it takes a sin of nature to know a sin of nature. So what made you come to this temple?"

"I believe ya are getting into private matters."

Rai and Kimiko turned to see Clay standing in the doorway.

"Clay, we were just…"

"Omi wants ya to help him out with playing Poochie 5," Clay interjected before Kimiko could finish.

Kimiko knew this was a lie because Omi had already clocked Poochie 5 but the tone of Clay's voice said that this wasn't a time to argue.

"Ok," She replied, "See you round Rai."

Kimiko walked out, Clay made sure Kimiko was out of ear shot before turning back to Rai.

"So ya've taken an interest in Kimiko," Clay stated, "Asking bout her back story, taking opportunity to be alone with her, going into her _room_."

"Look…" Rai began.

Clay walked right up to Rai, until their noses were touching; Clay using his bigger stature to tower over Rai slightly.

"No you look here, I've seen your type before."

Rai smirked at this.

"Somehow I doubt you've ever seen anything like me."

Rai was about to side step Clay when he was lifted up by his shirt.

"Listen up cause I'm only going to say this once," Clay threatened, "I care about Kimiko and I am not going to let her be hurt by some snake-eyed pretty boy looking for another notch in his belt. So no flirting, no funny business, no going anywhere yer not meant to and keep both hands where I can see them or else I'll do something to you I don't need a magic do-dad to do it with. Got it?"

Rai looked Clay right in the eye.

"Got it, now put me down before you get it."

Clay let go of Rai and walked out. Rai turned to finish the dishes. A slight smirk graced his lips.

_The guy's got guts, I'll give him that but in case he didn't notice; I don't have a belt._


	7. Questions

**Authors note: Alright I've done and redone this chapter so many times trying new ideas and dumping old ones that I've decided to say stuff it and just go with what I think works. Hope this chapter is alright and sorry about the wait.**

Kimiko let out a yawn as she walked off to bed, it was late and after a day like today she needed her rest. She gazed out a window and saw Rai sitting in top of a tree, looking up at the stars. His head seemed to shift slightly at regular intervals, indicating that his gaze kept shifting to somewhere else in the heavens. It was as if he was looking for something.

Another yawn escaped Kimiko's mouth.

_Oh well, _she thought, _that mystery can wait for the morning._

* * *

"Ya sure that you don't want to come along?" 

Kimiko shook her head for the tenth time. Clay and Omi were heading out to town with Master Hu to get some more supplies. Kimiko had decided to stay behind so that she could catch with her emails. Clay how ever seemed uneasy about leaving Kimiko alone, well as alone as a temple full of monks was.

"I'm sure; I've got a load of emails to catch up on."

Clay sigh sighed, if there was one thing that Kimiko couldn't be separated from; it's her computer if she had emails to send.

"Alright. If yer sure…"

"Hey, where's Omi?" Kimiko asked, tactfully changing the topic.

"Must still be trying to get Rai to get rid of his necklace," Clay answered.

Kimiko tilted her head questioningly.

"What's wrong with it?"

Clay shrugged.

"Something about it bearing a Heylin symbol and having no place in the temple…ya know…Omi stuff."

"Well I'll go find him and tell him that it's time to go."

* * *

Kimiko walked to the courtyard to see Omi babbling on to Rai who was busy sweeping the courtyard. Rai the whole time kept had an expression that said the lights were on but nobody's home. Neither seemed to have noticed that Kimiko was there, so Kimiko decided to sit back and see what unfolded. 

"…and that is why you should remove that medallion," Omi said, clearly certain he made a winning argument.

Rai turned his head away from the sweeping and seemed to be surprised to see Omi there.

"You mean you were still talking?"

Omi gaped at Rai before turning red.

"OF COURSE I WAS STILLING TALKING!!" Omi shout, waving his arms, "HAVE YOU NOT LISTENED TO A WORD I SAID?"

"Not really," Rai replied, leaning on the broom, "I heard you saying something about 'Heylin' and after that I just kinda blocked you out…or was it 'Hac Tao'?…or 'Hiney'?… I guess I wasn't even listening to you then."

Rai used the broom to keep an angry Omi at bay.

"I DEMAND THAT YOU REMOVE THE MEDALLION AT ONCE!!!"

"Look I told you that I can't," Rai said, getting frustrated.

"YOU MEAN YOU WON'T!"

Rai pulled the broom back, causing Omi to become unbalanced and fall on his face. Omi quickly recovered.

"Look, you poor excuse for a grapefruit," Rai said, "I'll make I deal with you, if you can take this medallion off, I'll not only give you the spear of Dashi, I'll also give you a free shot."

Omi stared at Rai suspiciously.

"Promise?"

"Heylin Oath," Rai replied solemnly, putting a hand on his heart.

Before Rai could react, Omi's hand shot out and grabbed the medallion. As he pulled on it, Omi was electrocuted by a strange green energy. After a few painful moments he came crashing to the ground. Rai tsked and bent down on one knee.

"I tried to warn you," Rai told the fallen Wudai warrior, "this medallion is the mark of my vow of servitude to Wuya, it is irremovable and while I wear it, I am bound by my word and by Heylin magic to obey her."

"You mean you knew that would happen?" Kimiko asked furiously.

Rai turned and noticed Kimiko standing there for the first time. His expression changed. Kimiko rushed by him to help Omi up.

"How could you do that?" Kimiko asked Rai.

"Look I tried to tell him I couldn't take the medallion off and the little munchkin wouldn't believe me."

"Why would I believe you?" Omi replied, "You are a demon."

This seemed to strike a wrong note with Rai.

"That makes every word I say a lie?" Rai asked, "But I guess you must be right because demons are all untrustworthy monsters; bringers of death and destruction, omens of famine and plague as well as devourers of souls. If a demon even wanted to walk a different path how on earth do you think he could do it with such a reputation?"

Kimiko looked at Rai, slightly taken aback by his reaction.

Rai then put on a snide smirk before adding, "but then again, you wouldn't care about demons, for you, just like Chase Young, they are just things to be defeated."

Omi looked as if he had been slapped in the face.

"I am nothing like Chase Young," Omi snapped.

"I suggest you change the mirror you use because you are just like him," Rai said tauntingly, "Oh I remember him, always so determined, always so arrogant. What ever he did he always strived to be the best and in his world he was the best. That ambition could have made him a pretty decent Heylin if he wasn't so set in his ways. To him there was either the Xiaolin way or the wrong way of doing things. The wrong had to be stopped."

Rai let out a shrug.

"But then again I guess that made him perfect for the job, he was loyal and honourable not mention a capable student; probably went on to be a Grandmaster Dragon and do great things."

Rai walked off, clearly having had enough talking about his old foe. Kimiko looked down at Omi. He seemed so confused.

"Omi, Rai's from a different time," Kimiko said soothingly, "he doesn't know what Chase became, Chase was still one of the good guys when Rai last saw him."

"But I am nothing like Chase," Omi said defiantly, before becoming unsure, "Am I?"

Kimiko stared at him, not sure what say. She would have loved to tell Omi "no he wasn't" and if it was Evil Chase Young she could have but the way that Rai described Good Chase just seemed to hit home that bit too much, so she gave the only answer she could.

"You better get going Omi, Clay and Master Hu are waiting for you."

* * *

Rai sighed, he had gotten rid of the pipsqueak and now before him was a greater challenge. Rai stared at the device in front of him. He had read all about them and learnt of the dangers. But looking at it face to face, he couldn't believe what all the hype was about. 

"Alright, 'washing machine'," Rai spoke in an even tone, "here's how this will work; I will put the clothing in, you will wash it. No shrinking, no running colours and no missing socks. Do we understand each other?"

The washing machine just stood there.

"I will take your silence as a sign that we are in agreement."

* * *

Kimiko was busy writing an email to Keiko in her cubical. It had been mostly replying to what had been Keiko's last email so it was mostly full of, 'no ways', 'oh my gawd' and 'he didn't?'. Not what she would call Einstein level communication but she enjoyed it. It was the last bit she was stuck on; Keiko had asked her what the new guy at the temple was like and Heylin wind demon that can run fast and will turn on them if Wuya ever found him just doesn't seem to cut it. 

She looked round her cubical, trying to find inspiration, until her gaze fell on the poster that hung on the wall. It had the picture of a Japanese sun rise with the title "Japan; Land of the rising sun". It had been given to her by Kieko to remind her of home but after having it on her wall for so long she kinda stopped noticing it. She turned back to her laptop before doing a double take back to the poster.

The words were written in Japanese.

Before Kimiko had a chance to question this, she heard loud crash coming from the laundry. She leapt up and ran to the laundry to be met by a mountain of foam and, sitting in the midst of it, a very irrated Rai.

"What happened?" Kimiko asked, in shock at the mess.

"He started it," Rai said, pointing to the mangled pile of metal that had once been the washing machine.

The sight of the destroyed washing machine almost made Kimiko cry.

"Rai, how could you? Do you know what it took me to get Master Fung to allow us to install a washing machine? Not to mention how much it cost to get some one to travel out here…"

Kimiko was stopped by Rai pulling out his Hern Tsai bag and shoving a big wad of money into Kimiko's hand.

"Here," Rai said, "if that doesn't cover it, let me know and consider what you may have left as payment to teach me how to work that accursed thing."

Rai then stormed out of the laundry, leaving behind him a big trail of foam. Kimiko looked at the money Rai had given her. At a glance it seemed that it would have been enough to cover how much it would cost to repair the machine. She then turned and faced the mountain of foam. It suddenly occurred to her that Rai had walked out and left a big mess for her to clean.

_Oh no, I'm not letting him get away with that!_

She gave chase. Kimiko followed the trail of foam out of the temple and into the woods.

_What is he doing out here?_

The trial ended, leaving Kimiko with no idea which way to head. She then heard a splash coming from the nearby river. For lack of a better lead, Kimiko went in that direction but when she arrived at the river, it seemed deserted and was about to leave when she saw something familiar lying on the ground.

_This is weird, why would he leave his robe out here? ... lying beside his shirt?…and his pants?!_

Just as the pieces fell together in her mind, she heard the sound of someone coming up for breath. Following her instincts, Kimiko leapt behind a nearby bush. Kimiko could not believe this; here she was, with no means of escaping with out being seen, in very close vicinity of butt naked male. Well technically he MAY not be completely naked, she hadn't seen underwear lying around so…

_KIMIKO!! WHAT ARE YOU THINKING? YOU'RE BUSY BREAKING RULE NUMBER ONE OF AUNT NATSUMI'S PUBERTY NO-NO LIST AND YOU'RE CONTEMPLATING TECHNICALITIES!!! _

Kimiko heard light splashing from the other side of the bush. This hopefully meant Rai hadn't seen her. Kimiko let go of the breath she had been holding. She may be able to get out of this in one piece. All she would have to do is wait until Rai looked the other direction and then make her escape. It was a brilliant plan except for the fact that it involved her having to know which way Rai was facing which in turn would involve her having to look.

Kimiko silently took in a deep breath. _Alright girl you can do this; it's not perving if you're looking for a chance to escape._

She stuck her head out of the bush tentatively; she was relieved to see that Rai had his back to her and was busy washing his arms. That was until she had a look at his back. On his back was a very strange scar. It almost seemed as if someone had carved a picture there. She couldn't make out the fine details of it but it looked like a man. Kimiko found her self both grossed out and intrigued.

What did it mean?

Her mind then kicked in and reminded her that she was supposed to be making her escape. She took one step backwards, right on to a twig. The snap got Rai's attention and caused him to turn and face where the noise came from. He froze when he saw Kimiko. Kimiko froze as well; not at being caught but at the sight of his chest.

Cut into his chest was an intricate sun design filled with strange symbols and in the centre was an outline of a hand. It filled his whole chest between his naval and just before it would have been visible if he had his shirt on. By colouring, Kimiko could tell it was old but it still so prominent and intimidating.

Rai realised what Kimiko was staring at and reflexively covered his chest.

"Kimiko…"

Kimiko snapped out of her frozen state and ran as fast as she could.

"Kimiko wait!" Rai called.

Kimiko didn't stop so Rai started to give chase but then stopped. He hadn't gotten dressed yet and naked demon chasing girl didn't quite seem to put across the right message. He went back to get his clothes. He didn't really have to worry about finding her; she was probably just heading back to the temple.

* * *

Rai walked back to the temple, hoping to be able to sort this whole mess out. 

"This has gone on long enough," A voice said, "three days that demon has walked freely in the temple."

On instinct, Rai pinned him self against an out side wall. He scooted along the wall until was able to peer in to the courtyard where he had heard the voice. Inside, Master Fung was busy talking to a couple of other monks.

"Through the last few years we have been lenient," the first monk, "even when your choice of dragons was questionable, especially for Dragon of Fire."

"Kimiko has brought worth and honour to that title," Master Fung answered sternly, "I will not have you belittle her abilities because of your own bias, Master Gao."

"Bias?" Master Gao asked, "She not only released that accursed demon but also seems to be befriending it. What is left there to be bias about?"

"Kimiko has proven her worth time and again," Master Fung replied angrily, "Just because you are too blind to see…"

"Peace, both of you calm down," The final monk said, "Despite reservations there might have been, Kimiko has proven her worth as a warrior. This degree of compassion she shows to the demon is uncharacteristic for how she usually deals with members of the Heylin side but could simply be inexperience since she is still young. You, Master Fung, however are not and yet have given that demon free rein in this temple."

"Master Sun, Rai aided the Dragons and only asked for food and shelter in return," Master Fung answered, "Courtesy would dictate that I comply."

"Yes, if this was a stranger," Master Sun replied, "He is Wuya's apprentice; this is no doubt one of his tricks."

Master Sun let out a sigh before continuing.

"As always the council trusts your judgement, however we have grown impatient with your lack of action and have given you a dead line. Either that demon is out of this temple by tomorrow night or it will be considered time for someone else to take the role of chief monk."

Master Sun left after saying that. Master Gao waited until he was out of sight before speaking again.

"And when that happens, I will make sure that some of your _other _questionable decisions are revoked."

Master Gao let the meaning hang while he left the court. Rai hide back against the wall and kept still so that he wasn't seen. Once he was certain that he was alone, he slide down the wall into a sitting position. It seemed that Rai's welcome had official worn out.

**Authors note: Well I'm just glad to see thidwritten. Let me know what you think. Reader satisfaction is very important for me.**

**Alright for those of you who are interested; Hac Tao, the term that Rai said early on in the chapter, literally translates to "black way" and is basically the Chinese equivalent of what western cultures call black magic.**


	8. Answers

**Authors note: I would like to wish you all a happy Chinese New Year. May the year of the rat bring good fortune to all. **

**I hope you like this new chapter and as always I'd love to know what you think. **

Kimiko was busy cleaning foam from the laundry. Her logic was that this was the last place that Rai would come. That's would mean that she didn't have to face him yet. Clay walked into the laundry so see the battle between her and the foam.

"What happened here?" Clay asked.

"Oh I'm not sure," Kimiko lied, "I had put a load in and when I come back this happened. Maybe it was a blocked pipe."

"Riiiiiight," Clay answered, not at all convinced.

"So how was town?" Kimiko asked, trying to change the subject.

"Omi told me about that added feature da added feature of Rai's necklace. "

"Oh he did?" Kimiko replied before returning to cleaning up the foam.

"Kimiko," Clay warned, "yer dancing over a pit of snakes and you know it."

"Clay, Rai seems like a nice guy if you try to get to know him."

"He's also has to follow the command of the second most evil women I have ever met."

"Second?" Kimiko asked, "Who is the most?"

"Cousin Janice but that's not that's not the point," Clay replied, "The point is that this is becoming another Daitaro."

Kimiko turned and faced Clay, her eyes burning in fury.

"You have no right mentioning that name," Kimiko warned.

"I do if I see someone close to me walking down the same path again," Clay replied.

"You don't know anything about Daitaro."

"I know you trusted him," Clay replied, "And I also know he ended up hurting you."

Kimiko was on the verge of hitting Clay.

"No-one decides who I can be friends with but me," Kimiko warned, "Don't start telling me what I can and can't do."

Clay, realising that he was on the losing end, took in a deep breath.

"Your right," Clay said, "I won't start telling you what to do but just know that I'm here if you need help."

Kimiko was shocked, she hadn't expected Clay to back down so easily. Clay looked at the mess.

"I'll go get a mop and help you clean up."

Kimiko smiled gratefully.

"Thanks Clay."

Clay smiled back.

"That's what friends are for."

* * *

Kimiko trudged through the darkened hallway towards the sleeping quarters after needing to have a late night "pit stop". She sent a quick glance out to the tree where she had seen Rai at last night and when she couldn't see him she tried to bite back a twinge of worry. Rai never came back from the river and considering their last meeting, Kimiko hadn't been so keen on going back to find him.

_No use worrying,_ Kimiko thought, _he'll turn up when he's ready_.

She turned round a corner and walked right in Rai.

"_Rai?!_ What are you doing here?"

"Looking for you," He replied.

Kimiko suddenly found the need to apologise.

"Rai I'm so sorry about what happened in the forest…"

"Kimiko…"

"It was an accident I swear, I mean yes I did follow you but that only because you left a big mess…"

"Kimiko…"

"But that doesn't mean for you think that I am some kind of perv and hmph.."

Kimiko was stopped when Rai covered her mouth with both hands.

"Apology accepted," Rai replied, "Now on the count of three I'm going remove my hands and if you start jabbering again I'll my hands back, OK? 1…2…3"

Rai slowly remove his hands. Kimiko remained silent.

"That's better," Rai said, "now that we gotten past that do you wanna go for a walk in the woods?"

Kimiko looked at him.

"It's the middle of the night."

"The moons out," Rai replied, "We'll able to well enough. It'll be fun."

Kimiko gave Rai a suspicious glance before a plan formulated in her mind.

"Alright but only if you promise to answer some questions I have."

"I'd rather not," Rai replied, having a fair idea what the questions were."

Kimiko crossed her arms defiantly,

"Well then I'd rather not walk in a dark forest."

"Alright fine," Rai replied, clearly irritated, "but only after we're out of the temple."

* * *

Rai and Kimiko were walking down one of the more clearly set out forest path. Kimiko had been formulating what questions she wanted to ask so she decided to start simple.

"Alright, first question, where did you learn Japanese?"

"What's that?" Rai asked.

"Oh don't play the ignorance card," Kimiko told him, "how else could you read the post in my cubical."

"Oh so it's a language."

Kimiko stared at Rai.

"Wait, you didn't know what Japanese is, yet you can read it."

"I can read any language," Rai answered.

Kimiko blink as there was an extended silence.

"How?"

Rai shrugged.

"When I was young I met an old guy named Legba, he gave me the ability to understand every language I come across."

"Wait, so some 'old guy" gave you the ability to understand any language," Kimiko asked, "Doesn't that seem a little weird."

"Says the girl that creates fireballs in her hands," Rai remarked.

"Good point. Alright next question, what were you doing last night in the tree out side the sleeping quarters."

"I was waiting for the right moment to strike, when I would creep in and mercilessly slaughter your friends, once that was done, I would lay a curse on you and claim you as my undead bride."

Kimiko stared at Rai.

"Alright that was just creepy," Kimiko warned.

"Sorry, sounded funnier in my head," Rai answered, "well the truth is that I was looking for my star."

"Your star?"

"My Mother told me that each person has a star in the sky looking after them. I've trying to find to so that I could give it a piece of my mind."

"Wait,…"

"GIRL WOULD YOU STOP SAYING 'WAIT'!," Rai snapped, "its getting annoying."

"Sorry," Kimiko muttered, "so you had a mother?"

"Of course I had a mother. What? Did you think I was born from the souls of children devoured by a flock of hell born condors whose spirits were combined in cursed storm created by an undead wizard."

A cricket chirped in the background.

"No but something tells me you've had just a bit too much time on your hands to think that up," Kimiko answered, "So what was she like?"

"My Mother? Well one of the main things I remember about her was how tough she was. I was probably one of the few things she was nice to. She wouldn't let anyone boss her round or tell her what to do," Rai smiled at the memory, "I think she would have liked you."

"Uh…thanks," Kimiko replied, "and I bet I would have liked her as well, all things considered."

"All things considered?"

"Well I can't say that I've met that many female demons so I don't know what they are like."

Rai stared at her.

"You think my mother was a _demon_?"

With out even waiting for Kimiko to reply Rai burst out laughing. He was laughing so hard that he needed to support himself against a tree.

"What's so funny," Kimiko demanded, not liking that she may the butt of some joke.

"Sorry it's just the idea of my mother being a demon."  
"Hold up are you saying that your mother isn't a demon?"

"Nope, in fact she was the reason for there being fewer demons in the world."

"So she was human?"

Rai's laughter stopped as a newer memory came flooding in.

"Yeah she was," Rai replied, trying to hide the sadness in his voice, "and so was I."

Rai only realised what he had said when it was too late. He looked at Kimiko and by the look on her face knew that she had heard him. He realised that there was no way he could finish this with out the full story, Rai turned away as he prepared himself. His voice became quiet.

"I don't remember a lot of what happened before the change, I was young, but I've been able to fill in some of the gaps. My mother was one of the magic people in my tribe whose job it was to keep bad spirit things out of my tribe; I think she was the best. Well of course I would think that, I was young and she of course was my mother. Demon, spirit or just bad juju, she could kill them all. The problem is that there is only so much bad juju you can tick off before it starts striking back. And it's so much easier for them to strike back when you have a dumb kid that goes exploring by him self. That's where I come in."

"A Wind demon decided to take me as a host and me, being a lovable but weak minded child had no way of stopping him. With him in control, I was forced to attack my village. My mother had been called away to help another village so she wasn't there when I attacked. The village were able to restrain me and one of the other magic people was able to put a containment spell on me to keep the demon within my body so that it didn't try to escape. When my mother returned she tried to do a purification spell that would remove the demon from my body."

Rai stopped his story momentarily.

"You asked me what those markings on my chest were. Well the on my back was the containment spell and the on my front was the purification spell."

Kimiko gave a brief "oh" before Rai continued with his story.

"Well I don't know about Japanese magic but where I came from spells weren't meant to be mixed. It was one few lessons my mother had managed to teach me before this happened. But that didn't stop my mother from trying. She used the most powerful spell she knew. I doubt anyone had expected the result to be pretty but what happened next will always stay with me. The purification spell killed the demon but because of the containment spell in place, it wasn't driven out of my body. After what felt like an eternity of pain, the body of the demon fused with mine, creating the specimen you see in front of you."

Kimiko tilted her head to the side slightly.

"So what does that make you?" Kimiko asked.

"A sin against nature and a freak by both human and demon standards," Rai answered before seeing the look Kimiko gave him, "what? Were you expecting a scientific term?"

"So what happened next?"

"What do you mean?" Rai asked.

"Well when the demon was killed, didn't things return to normal?"

Rai pointed to his eyes.

"Does this look normal to you? Sure the demon was dead but in some ways so was the boy, what was left was a fusion of the two. I was no longer human so that made me a threat to the village. Mum was given the duty of destroying me. She 'knew' she had to do it but when the time came, I was still her son so she couldn't bring her self to deal the killing blow. Instead she tied me up, put me in a boat and let me drift out to sea so that she wouldn't have to be there when death finally came."

"I drifted out to sea, further and further away from what had been my home, day and night a wind blew into the sail of the boat. I just lay there, drifting to who knows where, with no real idea what was happening, I felt something within me slowly changing; reforming to create something new. By fate or by a miracle I found my self in a new land with strange new creatures and strange people speaking a language I had never heard before. That was when I learned to run. People would see my eyes and then start chasing me. Even when I finally was able to understand what they were saying it didn't make things any easier. Each new land would bring new people and yet they would still hunt me because of what I was. So I just kept running, when I no longer wanted to run, I learned to fight. So this went on until Wuya witnessed what I was capable of. She offered to train me and help me gain better control of powers. In exchange I had to take a vow of servitude and I agreed."

Rai sat down on a rock and rested his head in his hands.

"I was tired," Rai whispered, "tired of running, tired of being afraid. I what I wished for was to make them run, make them feel fear."

Rai gave a humourless chuckle as he lifted his face out of his hands.

"I got my wished; I became the dreaded demon apprentice of Wuya, feared and hated for my deeds against the Xiaolin way. At first I liked the rush but after a while I realised that all I had become was sick little puppet for Wuya to control. By then it was too late. I suppose I actually should be grateful to Dashi; he was able to trap me before I did something worse …"

Rai didn't finish what he was going to say but the meaning seemed pretty clear. Kimiko stared, when she had told him she wanted answers, this hadn't been what she expected. Gone was the cocky demon that she had released and in its place…She just didn't know.

Rai stood up from his rock and shock his head.

"I shouldn't have told you," Rai muttered, "It felt good to finally tell someone but it's only going to make this harder."

"Make what harder?" Kimiko asked.

Rai pulled out a short black rod. It then telescoped out form the Spear of Dashi.

"Here," Rai said, "Take this and return to the Temple."

Kimiko took the Spear of Dashi and stared at it.

"Why are you giving it to me?" Kimiko asked, "If the temple find out I have it, they'll order me to use it on you."

"Exactly," Rai instructed, "and you're going to be a good little goodie good and do exactly what they want you to."

Kimiko looked at him in shock.

"You can't be serious," Kimiko said, "you're sounding as if you want to be turned back into a statue."

"Of course I don't," Rai snapped, "I'm going to everything I can to prevent that from happening. That's why I brought you out here, so that I could give the spear and say goodbye and still have a head start."

"But why?" Kimiko asked, "This morning you were still fully intending to stay at the temple and keep the spear. What changed?"

"The situation, that's what" Rai replied.

"How did it change?" Kimiko asked, suddenly fearing that he had found out about Wuya.

"I thought that the temple would let by-gones be by-gones," Rai replied, "but I guess some things never change."

"So they hold grudge, you didn't seem to care before."

"I didn't," Rai replied, "and I still don't what they think of me but I'm not going to let you suffer because of what I am."

"Suffer? Rai, what are you talking about?"

"Your Master has been given until tomorrow night to get rid of me," Rai explained, "if I'm not out of the temple by then, he will lose his position as chief monk and you may lose your position as Dragon."

Kimiko looked at him. He didn't seem to be lying but surely the temple would do that to Master Fung. There was no one on this earth who could be as good a teacher as Master Fung. And why would her position be in question?

Rai continued to speak.

"Your master seems to be a better man than all of the monks I have met and I don't want him to suffer for showing kindness where it didn't belong and you…"

Rai let out a sigh before speaking again.

"You are the closest thing to a friend I've had in long time and from what I've seen a damn good Dragon."

"What are you talking about you've seen nothing of what I can do."

"You were willing to give a guy like me a chance," Rai answered, "that makes you the best in my books at least. Besides, I think the temple needs someone like you to bring in fresh insight and to stop Omi's head from swelling any bigger."

Rai looked as if there was something else he wanted to say or do but he decided against it. Instead he just turned his back to Kimiko and started to walk off.

"Goodbye," he said over his shoulder.  
Kimiko looked on, that was it? All he was going to say is a half hearted good bye.

"Rai wait."

As Kimiko grabbed his shoulder, Rai spun round and did double palm wind strike into her gut. This sent Kimiko flying backward and painfully into a tree. Her legs gave way as she slide down the trunk to the ground. Kimko Stared at Rai in shock.

"Consider our friendship ended," Rai snarled, "next we meet, you better be prepared for battle because my blows will not be so soft."

At that Rai ran off. Kimiko tried to fight back the tears as she watched Rai disappear into the night. One simple question passed through her mind.

Why?

**Authors note: Now comes the part where I explain parts.I feel worth explaining.**

**For those who don't know, Daitaro is a character I introduced in my oneshot "Doing what is right not what fells right". It just made sense to me for Clay to bring up another time when Kimiko may has trusted the wrong guy. **

**Legba is the name of the afircan god of Language and destiny. He is a trickster that would take the form of an old man and could speak every language on earth, including something called the cosmic language.**


	9. Voices

**Author's note: I am so sorry about the delay. As I said in my last chapter of pains of a dragon, I have started my studies again and I am having trouble getting back into rhythm. I thank you all for your**** ongoing patience and I hope this chapter is alright. Let me know what you think. **

Rai walked through the forest. Put as much distance between him and the temple as he could.

"You know if you wind sprinted, you'd be long gone by now," A voice called, "but then again, you don't want that, do you?"

Rai looked and saw a copy of himself, leaning against a tree. He wasn't looking directly at Rai so only part of his face was seen.

"What's the matter," The copy asked, "running and hiding not good enough for you anymore?"

"Shut it," Rai said.

"Then again, it stopped being good enough along time ago," The copy mused, "that's what got us into the whole mess with Wuya, isn't it?"

"Keep talking and you'll really see what a mess is," Rai warned.

"Now that's what I like to see, The badass demon is back in town," The copy answered, "I was starting worry to that you were getting soft after telling pretty eye's your sob story."

"Look you're asking for it," Rai replied, "give me one reason why I shouldn't pop you in the nose."

"I am a figment of your imagination," The copy replied knowingly, "a hallucination used to personify your internal dialog. This could be created by your subconscious as a coping strategy to deal with your loneliness and strife or be signs of either natural or trauma induced Schizophrenia."

Rai gaped at the copy.

"Hey we both knew that reading that psychology book would come back to bite you," The copy answered.

"What really bites is having a hallucination trying to impress his creator with fancy words.

Rai walked past his copy and as he did so, almost walked into a small boy.

"Oh great," Rai said, clearly irked, "you too?"

"Why did we have to leave?" The boy asked, "Kimiko was nice."

Rai rolled his eyes at the boy.

"Well we both know that nice doesn't last. _She_ had been nice as well and look where that got us."

The copy let out a laugh.

"So that's what this is about? You still haven't gotten over what _she _did you."

Rai glared at his copy.

"Don't you dare think that you know what this is about."

"How would I know?" the copy replied, "I'm created by your mind so the chances of me knowing are pretty slim especially since you don't seem to have an answer."

"You want an answer?" Rai replied, "What part of 'This is how it's meant to be' don't you get?"

"'How it's meant to be' stinks," the boy replied.

"I'm with short stuff," the copy replied, "and you know the situation can't be good if I start agreeing with him."

"Would you two stop whining," Rai told them, "in case you haven't noticed my entire existence hasn't been fun and you don't see me complaining."

"No," the copy agreed, "that's what you have us here for."

"Things have changed," The boy said, "This time is different, the people are different."

"Nothing's changed," Rai informed the boy, "the people haven't changed, we've just found one, maybe two, exceptions to an iron clad rule."

"But isn't that enough?" the boy asked.

"No it isn't," Rai answered.

All the images vanished when Rai heard some inhuman screeching. Disobeying his first instinct, he followed the noise. He was amazed when he found the noise; the origin was an old woman, screeching at a tree. Rai quickly put on a pair of sun glasses and walked out to investigate.

"I'm not sure what's happening to the poor cat, but maybe it would be best to let it die," Rai told her.

"Oh no, my cat isn't dying, he just took a fright that's all," The old lady replied calmly, "I've been trying to get him back down by singing a calming song."

Instead of making a comment about the said singing, Rai looked up the tree and noticed a small kitten at the top.

"He's new, you see," the lady explained, "I was walking with it in the woods when he suddenly took a fright and ran up this tree."

"You hadn't by any chance been singing when he 'took a fright', had you?"

"Why yes I had, how did you know?"

"Just a guess," Rai replied, trying not to smirk.

The old woman looked up at her kitty, clearly in a state of worry. Rai took one look her sad face before coming to a decision.

"Tell you what," Rai said, "how about I climb up there and get him down for you."

"Oh would you? I would be so grateful."

Rai shrugged. He then crouched down and leapt up into the tree. He nimbly climbed up until he stood on the branch below the one kitten was on. He stretched on until his head at the same level as the kitten. Up close, Rai had a chance to admire it's tiger like stripes. That was until the branch he was standing on gave way. This ultimately and painfully led to Rai dangling from the kitten's branch by his jaw. The kitten look at Rai intently before it started rubbing against Rai's head, purring quite noisily.

"This your way of laughing your head off at me isn't it?" Rai asked when he was able to use his arms to take pressure off of his jaw.

The kitten didn't answer but kept right on purring, it then climbed from the branch, onto Rai's shoulder. Taking the hint, Rai lowered him self down to stand on another branch. Rai slowly and gently desended down the tree, making sure not to startle the kitten. When Rai reached the ground, the kitten gave Rai another affectionate rub before jumping into it's owner's arms.

"Oh Hu, you naughty boy," the old woman gently scolded, "Running away from mommy like that, if it wasn't for this kind young man, I might never have gotten you down."

The old woman looked Rai in the eye.

"Thank you for your kindness," the old woman said, "young Hu here is like family to me, I don't know what I would have done if you hadn't come by.

"Don't mention it," Rai answered, "in fact, if some people come by who are looking for me, really, **don't** mention it."

The old woman then pulled out a pair of familiar looking sunglasses.

"You dropped these while you were climbing the tree."

Rai instinctively touched beside his eyes and found that his glasses weren't there. The first thing that went through his mind was panic until he realised that she had already seen his eyes and hadn't reacted at all.

"Uh…thanks"

"I am merely show a fraction of the kindness you showed me," she replied.

"Well goodbye then," Rai answered.

"Where are you going?" She asked.

"No idea," Rai replied truthfully, "but if I don't leave now I may make it before nightfall."

Rai then turned to leave.

"Just because running and hiding has been all you've ever known, that doesn't mean that's how it always has to be."

Rai whipped round and found that the woman and the kitten had vanished.

_Where did she go?_

He stared at the spot where the she had been. Had he imagined the whole thing?

_Oh just great, if it wasn't bad enough b__efore now I'm imagining old women that make me climb trees. Would it kill me to have few pleasant hallucinations?_

Rather than wait for an answer, Rai left, never noticing the tiger prints in the dirt.

* * *

"We have checked everywhere," a monk informed Master Fung, "there is no sight of Kimko or the demon." 

Master Fung nodded. He saw Dojo land nearby.

"Negative on Spicer," Dojo called, "he was still sleeping and mumbling something about pudding cups."

"I SEE HER!" Omi shouted.

Master Fung and Clay ran to Omi. They looked in the direction that he was pointing and saw Kimiko emerge from the woods. They went to greet her.

"Ya gave us one heck of a fright," Clay scolded, "What did we tell you about running off in the middle of the night."

"uh Clay," Omi said tentatively, "I do not think we've ever told her anything about running off in the middle of the night."

Clay sent Omi a glare which seemed to say 'that's beside the point'.

"Where were you?" Master Fung asked.

Instead of answering Kimiko held up the Spear of Dashi. There was a mutual awe. Master Fung was the first to speak.

"And what of Rai?"

Kimiko simply answered, "he's gone."

With out saying anything else, Kimiko handed the Spear to Master Fung and walked off. The three men looked at the spear and then at Kimiko, all wondering what she had done to get a hold of it.

* * *

Rai walked through the forest, his steps never making a sound. Always having to fear being caught had taught him how to stride silently. It was second nature to him and also made his surroundings that bit louder. Loud enough to know that he wasn't alone in this forest. If those hallucinations hadn't been plaguing him, he might have noticed it sooner. He was being followed; he didn't know who and he didn't care. Hunters were all the same, all that changed was why they were hunting you. 

Who ever these ones were, what ever they wanted, they obviously were waiting for something cue to strike. So all Rai had to do was wait for that so that they came out of hiding.

Rai smirked, sure he should be scared but the fact was that right now he welcomed the rush. Anything to get his mind off of the temple.

* * *

Kimiko splashed water into her face, almost hopping that the water would wake her up from this dream. She knew this wasn't the case. It happened, Rai was gone and now the temple had the Spear back. Now the best outcome would be that she never see him again. 

She looked at her self in the mirror.

_A__lright, Kimiko, same old routine. Rai's made it clear that the truce is over so now you'll have to do what needs to be done._

It would be so much easier to believe those words if it didn't feel as if there was a lump of ice in her chest.

She looked away from the mirror when she saw Clay and Omi walking in.

"We didn't have a chance to congratulate you on retrieving the spear," Omi said.

Kimiko stared back at the mirror, feeling that the last thing she deserved was to be congratulated.

"So how did you get the Spear from Rai?" Omi asked.

"He gave it to me," Kimiko answered.

"Oh I see, you used deception to trick Rai…"

Kimiko whipped round.

"No I didn't trick him," she replied, "he gave it to me with out me asking and told me to use it on him the next time we meet."

Clay and Omi's eyes widened.

"Why would he do that?" Clay asked.

"Because he found out that Master Fung would lose his place as chief monk if he wasn't out of the temple by tonight."

"What?" Omi asked, "That's not true. The temple would never…"

"I'm afraid it is true."

The Wudai warriors looked and saw Master Fung standing there.

"I had been given until tonight to remove Rai from the temple," Master Fung explained.

"And would I have been removed as Dragon of Fire?" Kimiko asked.

Master Fung tensed at that.

"Of course not, you have earned that title and I will not let anyone take away from you."

"Were there ones that wanted to?" Kimiko asked.

Master Fung reluctantly nodded. At that something seemed to snap in Kimiko's mind.

_Rai had been telling the truth_.

"I tell you three this because, as Wudai Warriors, you have a right to know the truth," Master Fung explained, "use this knowledge as you see fit."

Master Fung lean the Spear of Dashi against the door way and left.

Kimiko looked at the doorway for a moment before she came to a decision. She raced out the door. Clay the meanwhile found himself rubbing the back of his head.

"Well I'll be…" he muttered.

* * *

Rai came to a river. He crouched down and cupped some water in his hands. He brought it up to his mouth and drank. As he drank his gaze fell upon a raven. It was perching on a branch on the other side of the river. It seemed to stare intently at Rai. Rai couldn't help but feel uneasy; he never believed that ravens were omens of doom but life had taught that anything that stared at you for too long only meant trouble.

Rai heard the twang of a bow and jumped out of the way out of instinct. His eyes caught a blur that he knew to be an arrow fly past and in to river. He looked in the direction the arrow had come from and saw a short, bald archer. Before Rai had chance to retaliate, he flipped into the dodge the strike of an armoured warrior holding a mace. Rai landed on his back and used as a shield from more arrows. Rai then jumped back a bit and did a mid-air round house kick into the small of the warriors back, sending him flying in to the archer.

The Raven then flew in and changed into human form mid-flight, hoping to tackle Rai while his back was turned. Rai side step and watched the raven/man crash into his comrades.

"You know, as amusing as this is," Rai taunted, "The 21st century is really starting to disappoint me."

At that, more 'hunters' came out from hiding; **a lot** more. Rai considered his options; the honourable thing would be to charge in head on.

_Which is why I'm__ so glad demons don't have honour._

At that Rai turned tail and wind sprinted out of there.

* * *

Omi practised swinging the Spear of Dashi round as if it was a staff. His mind was in a state of confusion. Why would Rai risk be trapped again to protect Master Fung? Rai is a demon, demons do not care about anyone or anything. They are all evil and have no place in this.

_If a demon even wanted to walk a different path how on earth do you think he could do it with such a reputation?_

Omi shook head, it didn't matter, Rai was a demon and threat, he had to be stopped.

_You wouldn't care about demons, for you, just like Chase Young, they are just things to be defeated._

Omi stopped as a chilling revelation came over him.

What if Rai was right?

* * *

Kimiko pack some Shen Gong Wu into a bag. She was going to find Rai, and if need be, take him away from China to somewhere he could live in peace with out trouble from either the Xiaolin or Heylin side. Maybe Japan; Papa would be able to make sure that he was provided for and he wouldn't as easy for Wuya to find. She hurried out of the vault and right into Clay.

"Clay?"

"Ya didn't think I would let ya run off like that, did ya?" Clay answered, "I know yer trying to do the right thing but right now that involves turning Rai back to stone."

Kimiko opened her mouth to argue but said nothing when Clay raised his hand, indicating that he wasn't finished.

"And after that," He continued, "We'll hit the library and find a way to remove that magic do-dad from his neck."

"Huh?" Kimiko asked.

"While Rai has that do-dad round his neck he's too much of a risk to have around in case Wuya finds him," Clay explained, "Turning him back into a statue is the safest thing we can do for him and us. If we find something that'll break the do-dad…well you get the drift."

Clay was taken aback when Kimiko ran in and gave him a hug.

"Thank you," Kimiko said, "I knew I could count on you."

Clay tried to hide his blush.

"Well don't thank me yet, we've still got to find 'im before Wuya does."

Kimiko suddenly pulled back when that realisation hit her.

"How are we supposed to find him? We've have no idea where'd he'd head."

A sly grin appeared on Clay's face.

"You got your PDA?" he asked.

"Always but how will that help us?"

"Well since I planted one of your trackers on Rai when we had our little chat in the kitchen, I figure you might be able to find him."

Kimiko was both shocked and impressed at hearing this. She quickly powered up her PDA and opened the GPS tracking program. She instant noticed one tracker was going very fast.

"Got him," Kimiko said confidently, hope burning brightly within her.

"Well then," Clay said, glad to finally have his fire-girl back, "let's go get Omi and nab us a demon."


	10. Changes

**Authors note: Hi there, new chapter time. Hope that it is alright, let me know what you think. Yet again I thank you all for your patience with me.**

Rai wind sprinted through the forest.

_What a bunch of numskulls, they left an opening wide open. I mean come on, how thick can you get. They had me a perfect location, the river cutting off my escape that way and the forest providing the perfect cover so that they could surround me. And what do they do? They rush the attack, reveal their location and give me a perfect route to escape. It's so stupid it was almost as if they staged it…and if that were the case…_

Before Rai had a chance to complete that line of thought, a figure appeared in his path.

"REPULSE THE MONKEY!!"

Rai wasn't entirely sure what happened but the next minute he was airborne. He soon came crashing down in to a clearing. Rai sent out a gust of wind but still landed with his head stuck in the ground. Rai pulled his head out of the ground and flung his head back with a large gasp for air. When he swung his head back forward he came face to face with a lioness. There was a moment of silence between them.

"So," Rai asked, "Come here often?"

The lioness roared, Rai got up and ran for it. Before he could gain momentum, he was met by a wall of wild cats. He looked for a opening but found that he was completely surrounded by a range of wild cats.

"Impressive army," Rai muttered, "But who is the general?"

"That would be me," Said a voice behind Rai.

Rai spun round and swung his fist. Rai's fist was caught by man in strange armour and long black hair. Rai also got a glimpse of his slit eyes before getting hurled across the clearing.

"So we meet again."

"Uh, I don't believe we've meet."

"You do not remember me?" the man asked, "I am hurt."

Rai stared at the man for a moment. He didn't look like one of the demons Rai had ticked off but there was certainly something familiar.

_What, hadn't he used something called "repulse the monkey", the only person that I ever saw use that was…_

"Chase Dung, is that you?"

The man's eye twitched slightly.

"My name is Chase **Young!!**"

"How the heck are you still alive?" Rai asked, "You should have died of old age years ago. Unless…"

Rai mentally checked some things.

_Freaky eyes._

_Long life span_

_Messy but stylish hair_

"No way," Rai said, "Chase 'straight and narrow' Young became a demon."

Rai suddenly burst out laughing. Chase growled slightly.

"Don't you laugh at me," Chase threatened.

"I can't help it," Rai said as gasp to regain his breath, "this is just the funniest thing I've seen since I became flesh again."

"Show your old rival some respect."

"Rival?" Rai asked in disbelief, "To me you were always just some dumb kid that hung out with Dashi."

Chase walked up to Rai.

"You will show me the respect I deserve."

Instead of answering, Rai suddenly lot a barrage of kicks and punches. There was minute where Rai's fists and feet were blurring in their attack against Chase.

_Sucker_

Rai then realised that despite his attacks, Chase was still standing there, complete unfazed and unharmed. In fact Chase had developed a smug grin.

"HEYLIN THUNDER CLAP!"

Rai clapped his hands to together and sent a shock wave. There was a large cloud of dust and the sound of cats being sent flying. Rai smirked confidently, or at least until the dust cleared and revealed Chase in exactly the same place.

Chase stuck out one hand and flicked Rai in the fore-head, with enough force to send him skidding across the ground.

When Rai ground to a halt, two tigers pinned him down. When the world stopped spinning and Rai's vision cleared, he saw Chase standing over him with a big spear.

"I will give you this one chance," Chase said, "Swear your loyalty to me or be destroyed."

"Well hen you say like that," Rai replied, "I guess I'll see you on the other side."

"Very well."

"Star Hanabi, FIRE!!"

Chase leapt away from Rai and spun his spear to act as a barrier just in to stop a fireball. He then saw it's creator flying at him with a jump kick. He caught Kimiko by the foot. Just then Clay came charging in. Chase swung Kimiko into Clay, sending them to the ground nearby to be pinned by some more big cats.

"You may have interfered last time," Chase told them, "but I will not let you interfere this time."

Chase turned back to finish it when saw Omi.

"Stop," Omi said, "You don't need to do this."

"Oh sure," Rai muttered, "try and reason with the psycho leader of a cat army."

Instead of attack, Chase just stared at Omi.

"Move aside," He ordered, "this has to be done."

"No it does not," Omi countered, "We have the Spear of Dashi, all we have to do is use it and…"

"And wait for him to be released again?" Chase replied, "The Xiaolin methods methods proven ineffective and this time more permanent action must be taken."

"But…"

"Omi, this demon is the reason Wuya became so all powerful the first time," Chase explained, "after Wuya's downfall there were still a number of artefacts unaccounted for. He no doubt knows of their location."

"But…he was being controlled," Omi reasoned.

"Even if that's true Wuya will just control him again," Chase replied, "Or someone else will. He is too dangerous to let run free."

"But…" Omi said, "Murder is not the Xiaolin way."

"That is why I'm doing it," Chase explained, "I'm not asking the Temple to kill him, I'm asking that they not interfere."

Omi looked back Rai. Rai just laid his head back in resignation.

"Omi," Chase said in a voice that almost sounded kind, "For the sake of the world, please, step aside just this once."

Omi simply bowed his head. Chase took that as all the answer he needed. He walked past Omi to where Rai was pinned down. He raised his spear, ready to deal a final blow.

Rai closed his eyes and took one last breath. He then waited for death to come.

And waited…

And waited…

When nothing seemed to happen, he tentatively opened one and saw Chase Young, frozen in place. Stabbed into his back was the Spear of Dashi. Holding the handle was…Omi.

"I will never step aside, and let you harm people," Omi told Chase, "Not once, not ever!!"

As Chase turned to stone, his cat army scattered.

There was a moment of silence as everyone took it what had just happened. Rai looked at Omi in amazement. Before anyone had a chance to say anything, a familiar voice call out."

"Chase," a voice called out, "Where are you?"

Just then, Wuya appeared.

"I know you told me to stay at the lair but I've narrowed my choices down and I wanted your opinion," She said, holding up two pieces of cloth, "Which one do you think would look better in the bedroom?"

She dropped the cloth when she saw Chase had been turned into a statue.

"Chase?" Wuya asked, "What on earth happened to…"

She stopped what she was saying when she saw Rai standing there.

"Rai?"

Rai just stared.

"Wuya…" Rai began, "you've been released."

Rai turned to Kimiko as realisation struck. Kimiko just turned her head in guilt.

"And you knew."

It seemed to be more a thoughtful comment than an accusation. Just then Wuya ran up and pulled Rai into a hug.

"My dear boy, I thought I would never see you again."

"Well we can't all be so lucky," Rai muttered.

Wuya didn't seem to hear that comment. She ended the hug

"But know that you've returned to me, we can finish what we started."

"You mean what you started," Rai muttered.

"With you by my side once more, we will take our rightful place as rulers of this world," Wuya said triumphantly, "and we will begin by destroying these insolent Dragons."

Clay and Omi quickly reached for their Wu.

"No," Rai answered, "I don't think we will."

"What?!"

"I think it's time for me to take my leave from Heylin lackeying," Rai explained, "1500 years should qualify as retirement age."

"You can not be serious."

"I'm dead serious Wuya," Rai replied, "You can pick me up with a pair of chopsticks because I'm done."

"You can not just walk away when world denomination can be ours."

"Yeah, about that," Rai said, "Don't you think that you've been playing that flute a little too long?"

"What is that supposed to mean?" Wuya asked.

"Come on, isn't it obvious? Why do you want to rule the world? Even if by some miracle you succeed your would have to spend the rest of your exceptionally long life fighting just to hold on to it."

"Don't you dare get all self righteous with me," Wuya snapped, "You willing agreed to become my apprentice so that we could achieve world domination."

Rai then made a sound imitating a game show buzzer.

"Wrong Wuya, I became you 'apprentice' so that I could get back at the people who hunted me and where did it me? I just ended with more enemies and a slumber sentence."

"You still get back at them," Wuya reasoned.

"Get back at who?" Rai asked, "It's been 1500 **years**, every body that I have a reason to hate is dead, along with every person that has a reason to hate me."

Rai looked at the statue of Chase Young.

"With a few exceptions, of course."

"What about them?" Wuya asked, indicating the Wudai Warriors, "they are from a Temple formed from that accursed Dashi."

"They're also the ones who released me," Rai countered, "So I figured that makes us even. Besides, why would I hold a grudge against them just because of who founded their temple."

"How can you just allow that Temple to stand after what Dashi did to you?" Wuya demanded.

"We were enemies," Rai replied irritated, "I was a threat to all he held dear and even then he still should me more mercy than what you would have had me show him. And one could ask why you didn't realise me? TEN YEARS, WUYA! Ten years that I was stuck as statue before you were trapped and now I find out that instead of freeing me when you got out, YOU'RE CHOOSING BED SPREADS WITH CHASE YOUNG!!"

"They're drape designs," Wuya corrected, "And I never stopped trying to find you, its just that…"

"It's just that you were too busy trying to find a way to take over the world," Rai finished, "Have you even taken the time to have looked at the world? It is a new place with new people and I just want my part in it, not all of it."

Rai sent a meaningful glance to the Wudai Warriors before continuing to speak.

"Welcome to the new world Wuya, either find a place in it or perish."

Wuya let out a growl.

"Very well," She said, "it seems you need some persuasion."

Wuya's right hand started to glow green. The medallion around suddenly gave the same green glow, which soon spread to the rest of Rai's body. Rai's body started to contort as if a something was trying force Rai to bow.

"You took a vow to serve me," Wuya reminded him, "I own you."

"Not…any…more," Rai managed out.

Rai burst up, the green energy vanished. Only the medallion continued to glow.

"What?"

At that, Rai walked over to Omi. He then kneeled down, bowing his head.

"Omi of the Xiaolin Temple," Rai said sombrely, "You saved my life, even though it would have been in you best interests to let me die. For that I am indebted to you."

Everyone looked on in shock; the most shocked of all was Omi.

"My fate is in your hands Omi," Rai continued, "Do with it what you wish."

Omi soon regained his composure and said, "I wish that you renounce all loyalty to Wuya and the Heylin side."

"Consider it done," Rai answered, "now remove the symbol of my servitude to Wuya."

Omi stared blankly at Rai for a moment.

"The gold, glowy thing around my neck," Rai prompted.

Omi looked uncertainly at Rai but still took hold of the rope holding the medallion with both hands. He closed his eyes and flinched as he pulled upwards. When nothing happened, Omi opened one eye and saw that the medallion was off of Rai's neck. Wuya went bug eyed.

"That's…impossible," Wuya stammered.

Rai stood up and walked up to Wuya.

"The impossible happens," Rai replied, "Now I suggest you leave before I get cranky."

To prove his point; Rai started to form a whirlwind in his hand. Wuya scowled.

"You'll regret this Rai," she warned as she retreated.

"Nothing will make me regret this," Rai muttered to no one in particular.

Kimiko walked up to Rai tentatively. They stared into each others eyes for a moment.

"Rai…" She began as she inched in closer.

"Kimiko…"

Anything Rai was about to say was lost when Kimiko drove her knee hard into Rai's gut. Rai clutched his stomach as he flew to the ground.

"That was for the cheap shot back in the forest," Kimiko explained, "I don't give people free shots."

She then moved a strand of hair out of her and then walked off with her head held high.

"What makes this worse," Rai gasped out, "is that that still makes my top ten list for best outcomes when woman are involved."

Clay walked up to Rai, shaking his head but grinning. He held a hand for Rai.

"Need a hand?"

Rai looked at him suspiciously but took the hand anyway. Clay helped him up. Rai looked at him clearly confused. Clay then jerked his head, sending Omi a signal that it was time to leave. Clay and Omi walked off to where Kimiko had enlarged the Silver Manta Ray.

"Well it's been fun," Clay said, "We should do again sometime, ya know, without the cats."

"So now what happens to me?" Rai asked.

"What ever you want to have happen," Kimiko told him, seemingly having more interested in getting comfortable in her chair then in Rai.

Rai stopped and stared.

"Wait, first you save my life and now you're just letting me go."

"Yep," Clay answered.

"But I acknowledged a debt I hold to Omi, aren't you going to use it against me?"

"You renounced your loyalty to Wuya and the Heylin side," Omi answered, "that is all I wanted."

"Besides," Clay said, "that's not the way we work.

"So you're saying that I can leave now and you won't chase me?" Rai asked.

"We have no reason to chase you with," Omi explained, "we no longer have a means of trapping you and we have other duties to contend our time with."

"Just don't take over the world and leave those kittens alone and we'll call it even," Clay answered.

"It's like you said," Kimiko said, "It's a new world and now you're free to find your place in it. No strings attached."

Rai just stood there, completely shell shocked.

"Well…uh…thanks," Rai managed out.

Kimiko looked like she wanted to say something else but instead just looked away.

"Good-bye partner," Clay replied, "and good luck."

The top to the Silver Manta Ray closed and it took off.

Rai stared as it flew off into the distance. As he walked back to the clearing, the reality of it dawned on him. He was free of Wuya's control, free to do what ever he wished. Slowly decisions started to form in his mind.

Rai came up to Chase Young. He gave a humourless smirk

_Oh how the mighty have fallen. I wish I would be able just to leave him here but…_

Rai pulled the Spear of Dashi out of Chase's back. Slowly Chase reanimated.

"What is this?" Chase asked.

"This is me releasing you," Rai answered.

"Do not try to trick me," Chase snarled.

"No trick," Rai answered, "just preventing you from going through what I had to."

Chase looked at Rai suspiciously but didn't make a move to attack.

"Why would you do that? I just tried to kill you."

"But you failed, so it's all good," Rai replied, "besides since I'm no longer working for Wuya, there's no reason for you to kill me."

"Yes, I heard."

"Really?"

"Rai, I am trained in both mystic Xiaolin arts and the dark Heylin arts. I am aware of my surroundings even in an induced slumber."

"Wow," Rai said, "useful trick."

"You do realise that there is nothing stopping me from killing you now."

"Well yeah," Rai answered, "but I doubt you will."

"And why is that?" Chase asked.

"It would pointless," Rai reasoned, "And I know that you won't kill for no good reason."

"You don't know me," Chase stated.

"Chase, you may be a demon, you may be an immortal and you may be Heylin but deep down you are still the same Chase Young I remember, "Rai said, "the same Chase who repays people are indebted to. Speaking of which, I've already decided how you start by repaying me."

"Yes?" Chase asked, clearly not liking the sound of this.

"I want you not to seek vengeance against the Temple."

"What?"

"I want you to go back to your place and pretend like nothing has happened," Rai explained, "no revenge, no pay back and no getting even."

"That is all you ask?" Chase asked in disbelief.

"Yep."

"And what of the spear?"

"Oh I'm keeping it," Rai explained, "I've got plans for it but I promise that those plans don't involve using it on you."

"So if I agree to this, we're even?" Chase asked.

"Yeah, I'd say so."

"Very well, Rai you have your self a deal," Chase conceded, "I give my word I will honour it."

"Great, now I suggest you go before Wuya takes control of your stuff."

Chase scowled at Rai but flew off without saying another word.

"Ok," Rai said to himself, "What's next on the agenda?"


	11. Allies

**Author's note: A new chapter is up but before that, I have a notice. Though I am not in favour of spaming my stories with notes that are not related I feel this is important. **

**For those who don't**** know, JeffAllenX (youtube username) , a ****Director and Storyboard Artist of Xiaolin Showdown! has informed us that there is a chance to get a forth season, if there is enough surport shown. A petition has been started and the link for it can be found on his youtube account page. As a XS Fanfic writer I urge anyone who is reading this that hasn't already to show their support. At the risk of sounding cliche, every signature matters. **

**And now with that said, on with the story.**

Kimiko looked out the window, back at the clearing.

"Hey fire girl."

Kimiko turned back to face Clay, who was sitting in the back seat.

"Ya did the right thing."

"I know," She said, "but I still wish we could have asked him to come back to the temple with us."

"But ya didn't because ya know what would happen."

"Of course I know," Kimiko replied, "Master Fung would still loss his job because Rai wasn't out of the temple by tonight and then we'd be worse of then what we started. It just stinks that it looked like he wasn't welcome."

"Well," Clay said, "He still has the tracker on him so we'll give the temple some time to cool off and then we'll make a plan."

Kimiko nodded. It wasn't what she would have liked to do but it was the best idea they had. Kimiko turned to Omi, who was driving. He seemed to be deep in thought about something.

"Omi."

"Yes Kimiko?"

"Thanks for saving Rai."

"It's what we do," Omi answered.

As the Silver Manta Ray landed, Master Fung came out to greet them.

"You return," he said, surprisingly solemn, "was the mission successful."

"Well…" Clay replied, "Not in the way we intended."

The Wudai Warriors quickly explained what had happened. Master Fung to his credit stayed quiet until the end.

"So even though Rai was a heylin and considered a threat to the temple, you still saved his life."

"It seemed like the right thing to do," Omi replied.

"That's because it _was_ the right thing to do," Master Fung replied kindly, "I am very proud of you, all of you."

Omi beamed.

"But what do we do now?" Clay asked.

"We wait, if his destiny is entwined with ours then our paths will cross again," Master Fung explained, "a spider waits for the fly to come to him, not the other way round."

"Intruder! The demon has returned!"

"That fly must have a death wish," Clay said.

The warriors and Master Fung ran to see a troupe of monks with bows pointing their arrows at Rai.

"Back off," Rai said, "Demon come in peace."

"Why should we believe that?" Master Chong asked.

"Because if I wasn't I'd probably be feeding on your flesh right now."

Rai ducked to dodge a couple of arrows.

"WHY CAN'T YOU GUYS TAKE A JOKE?!"

Rai dipped to the right to dodge a couple more arrows.

"Does anyone else want to play shoot at the demon?"

Rai then jumped into the air to dodge another couple. When he landed he saw two more looking on expectantly. Rai let out a sigh.

"Go on, you know you want to."

Rai ducked again to dodge a final couple.

"Stand down," Master Fung ordered.

All the monks except one lowered their bows.

"You too, Master Ping," Master Fung ordered.

"But I didn't get my turn," he whined.

He lowered the bow because of the glare he received.

"Why have you returned?" Master Fung asked.

"Omi and I have some unfinished business," Rai explained.

Omi stepped forward.

"And what business is that?"

Rai pulled out the Spear of Dashi and threw it to Omi. The Wudai Warriors looked at it in shock.

"I swore an oath that if you were able to remove the medallion I would give you the Spear and a free shot," Rai said.

Rai opened his arms, making himself as wide a target as possible. Omi's gaze shifted from the Spear to Rai and back again several times.

"I can not," Omi said.

Rai let go of the breath he had been holding.

"Are you sure," Rai said, "when I leave, you'll have wasted your chance."

"I am sure," Omi said, "once we were enemies but not anymore."

"Well, in that case…"

Rai pulled a cloth bag from his robe and threw it to Master Fung. Master Fung opened it to reveal that it was full of coins.

"Consider that payment for the accommodation," Rai said, "now all accounts are balances and all debts paid. I have no more business with the temple."

Master Fung stared at him curiously.

"All the best," Rai said, "good bye and good luck."

"Where will you go?" Master Fung asked.

"Not really sure," Rai replied, "but hey, I've infinite wealth, I know any language I'll come up against and thanks to sunglasses I can pass off as a human, I'm sure I'll be able to improvise."

Rai gave a confident smirk as point to one of the nearby mountains

"I'll spend the night camping out at that mountain. Tomorrow I'll hit the road and see what happens. Before I forget, I believe this belongs to you guys."

Rai pulled something out and walked up to Kimiko, he took her hand and dropped something into her palm. She looked at it and saw that it was one of her trackers.

"You mean you knew you had this."

"Well yeah I did, I found it after my wash. Figured I might as well keep it since you guys wanted me to have it," Rai answered, "might as well return it now."

Kimiko realised that this was it. Without the tracker, there was no certain way to find Rai again so if he left it would probably be goodbye for good. There was no time plan, no time to think things through, it was either speak now or never get a chance.

"Rai…"

Rai raised a hand, silencing her.

"I appreciate the sentiment but please, don't make an offer you'll end up regretting."

This caused Kimiko to turn silent. She swallowed hard but nodded, indicating that he understood.

Rai took few steps back and put on a big smirk.

"Well so long and thanks for memories."

As Rai turned his back to everyone and started to walk away, his smirk turned to look of grim determination. He had made his choice and he would see it through.

* * *

Wuya stood in front of Chase's entire legion of Cats.

"It is truly tragic what has happened to our great leader," Wuya said, feigning sadness.

The cats hung their heads.

"But we can not let this time of despair stop us from making the ones responsible suffer for their crimes, that is why the role of leader now…"

"Belongs to me."

Wuya turned around and came face to face with Chase.

"Chase your alive! I mean, thank heavens you're alright."

Wuya tried to run in for a hug manoeuvre but stop when Chase kept her back with a spear.

"Yes we can certainly thank heaven because we defiantly can't thank you," Chase snarled, "and now I return to find you trying to take control of my kingdom."

"Well you see, you were gone and well…" Wuya stopped herself and sighed in defeat, "Nothing I say is going to help matters, is it?"

Next thing Wuya knew she was kicked out of Chase's lair, literally. After taking a moment of rub her aching backside, she quickly checked to see if she still had all of her limbs. She breathed a sigh of relief.

"Well that didn't go too…"

She was interrupted by Cyclops landing on top of her.

"And take your minion with you!" Chase shouted.

* * *

Night time had reached the temple. Kimiko had put away the Sheng Gong Wu and was walking back to the sleeping quarters. She stopped and took the moment to glance at the mountain where Rai had said he would be spending the night. It was so close and yet…

"Kimiko."

She came out of her thoughts to see Clay and Omi standing there.

"Hey guys, sorry I didn't see you there, my mind was else where."

"I've got a pretty good idea where yer mind was," Clay said sending a meaningful glance towards the mountain.

Kimiko glared at him, sending a clear message what would happen if he continued this thought pattern. Clay raised his hands in surrender.

"We could go to the mountain and look for him," Omi offered.

"I highly doubt he's at the mountain," Kimiko said dismissively, "he's probably long gone."

"We could check," Omi insisted.

"And what if we did find him, then what?" Kimiko asked, "we might not have voiced it but he knows the offer was there."

"If he knew, why wouldn't he take it?" Omi asked.

"Come on, his history aside, what could we offer him that he couldn't get for him self, one way or another?"

"A place where he would have to live a lie about who and what he was," Clay answered.

Kimiko looked at the mountain.

"Clay, I understand what your coming from, I really do," She said, "but Rai is a demon who had to do Wuya's bidding until he was locked away by the so-called 'good-guys' not to mention probably a lot of other things he hasn't told us. I think that Rai _wants _to live a lie and the more I find out about him, the less I can blame him."

Clay and Omi looked at each other and nodded; they had both decided that it should be Kimiko's call whether or not to go after him seeing as she had been the only one to give him a chance. Now that they knew her wishes they would honour it. They turned back to Kimiko when they heard her chuckle.

"I will say this though," She said, "this certainly was an interesting few days."

"Yeah that it was," Clay said, "I'll be glad to have things back to normal."

"Clay," Kimiko said, "this temple doesn't know the meaning of the word normal."

The three warriors laughed as they headed to their sleeping quarters.

* * *

Rai stared at the fire he had created. The light from it soon filled the whole cave. Rai couldn't hold back a sigh. Really the fire had been a pointless exercise, the moon was out so he didn't need the light he wasn't going to get any heat from it, he didn't need it to cook anything and right now the scariest thing inside this cave was him but it at least made the whole demon hiding in a cave thing not quite so creepy.

When Rai was done staring at the fire, he started looking around the cave. As caves goes it was…well…a cave. It was in the side of a mountain overlooking a forest, not much more than that but right now it was ho…shelter.

Rai's expression soured, he didn't like caves. He didn't like the fact that he needed caves but that was a fact of life. It brought to mind a question, why did the monsters hide away in caves?

_Because being out in the daylight could get them killed._

Rai lifted up the right pant leg and pushed down the sock to reveal the scar around the ankle. He traced his along the scar and as memory of its origin came back to him. As he stared at it the world around him started to change. The fire vanished, the cave grew larger and the clear moonlit night was replaced replace by thunder and lightning. As he was suck into this world, a figure started appearing and with every lightning flashing, became clearer.

"Rai"

The mention of Rai's name made him jump back in fright. He looked again at his surroundings; the storm was gone, the fire had returned and standing near the fire was … Master Fung.

"You!" Rai said in shock.

"You looked surprised to see me."

"Well that was the look I was going for," Rai replied snippily, "how did you find me?"

Master Fung raised an eyebrow.

"You told us you would be here."

"Well yeah but I didn't expect you to believe me," Rai replied.

"And so you expected this to be the last place that we would look," Master Fung said, "That is true but to find something, it is always best to look in the last place first."

Rai stared blankly at the old monk.

"You know that makes absolutely no sense."

"And yet here I am and there you are."

"Hey," Rai said with a shrug, "guess I can't fight that logic."

"Indeed," Master Fung, "and since fighting is not one of my intentions, would I be allowed to set down?"

Rai gave Master Fung a once over before giving a confident smirk.

"Sure, why not."

Master Fung gave his thanks as he sat down. Master Fung warmed his hands as a silence passed over them. Rai stubbornly refused to be the one to start a conversation though Master Fung soon took the hint.

"Kimiko told us about what happened last night."

This made Rai tense. Had she told them his secret?

"What did she tell you?" Rai asked.

"About how you gave her the Spear of Dashi so that I did not lose my position."

Rai relaxed slightly.

"I owe you my gratitude," Master Fung said.

Rai stuck out his jaw defiantly.

"Don't get the wrong idea," he said, "I didn't do for you, I did it for _Her._"

"Oh really?"

"Yeah, look even if she didn't lose her job, she would lose someone who was on her side," Rai expalained, "she deserves every ally she can get and she doesn't need me costing her any."

Master Fung nodded, seemingly satisfied with that answer.

"That is true; everyone needs allies," He said almost slyly, "even demons."

Rai let out a hollow laugh.

"Demons don't have allies, they have masters or they have minions, anything else is just something waiting for the right moment to stab you in the back."

"A very 'realistic' view," Master Fung replied, "though just because demons do not have allies, it doesn't mean they can not."

"Alright, I'll bite, why are you here?"

"I had noticed something very interesting while you were staying with us," Master Fung explained, "You never once used your powers to help you with your chores. Wouldn't it have been easier to use some of your wind ability? Like when you were cleaning the corridor, for instance."

"Sure I could if you want me to blow away the corridor along with the dirt."

"Haven't you received training?"

"Wuya trained me," Rai replied.

"I see," Master Fung said, "And did she actually train you to help you use your abilities or did she just show enough so that you could inflict damage with it?"

Rai glared momentarily.

"What do you think?"

"I see."

"And what do you see?" Rai asked, "Because all I see is someone who is asking questions without making a point. Yes, Wuya is the only training I got and anything that wasn't bash, bang and boom I had to teach myself. Unlike you Xiaolin types, Wuya doesn't give two bits about balance and maintaining control and all that stuff."

"Precisely," Master Fung said, "that is why I'm here."

"Care to clarify."

"What if you received training from one of us Xiaolin types," Master Fung offered, "namely me?"

Rai stared at Master Fung for a moment.

"You might want to check up on that market man because I don't think that the leaves he sold you was tea."

"I was not joking so I'd appreciate it if you didn't joke back."

"I'm sorry but you can't honestly be suggesting to bring my demon butt back to that temple of yours and actually train there," Rai said, "come on, there is no way your temple buddies will let me in and besides, I don't want to be a part of this anymore."

Master Fung's face turned serious.

"Rai, you have great skills, skills that can be used for good or evil. What you chose to do with those skills is your choice but it's a choice you will eventually have to make. Even if you choose to hide who you are and what you can do, the day will undoubtedly come to you will be force to use your skills. Unless you have proper control of those skills, using them end up costing you dearly."

Rai stared at Master Fung for a moment before returning his gaze back to the fireplace. Master Fung continued to stare before sighing in defeat.

"But it is your choice," he said, "and you are right, the other monks would not approve about me bringing you back to the temple. It would cause conflict seeing as I have no real grounds for this offer."

Master Fung stood up and heading to the exit.

"What if I paid you."

Master Fung turned back.

"Excuse me?"

"What if I paid you," Rai repeated, "to train me."

Master Fung paused, contemplating the idea.

"That would settle the issue of having grounds to train you on. As a master I reserve the right to take on any paying pupil I see fit. That said I couldn't take your money…"

"Look," Rai said, "if the Wudai warriors have been keeping you informed like they should you will know that money isn't a problem and this way you don't get kicked out and I don't have to act like your doing me a favour."

"So you are willing to give this a chance?" Master Fung asked.

"For now," Rai said, "but don't hold your breath on how long I'll stay."

"The length of time you choose to stay will the length of time you need," Master Fung said ominously.

Rai raised an eyebrow.

"Are your pupils supposed to understand what the heck you are saying?"

"Ideally yes, though if you are unsure, a smile and nod will suffice."

"Works for me. Either that or ripping out your voice box through your mouth and moulding it into a clay cup."

Master Fung stared at Rai, clearly unsure on how to react.

"It's a joke," Rai said, "Just smile and nod."

"Very well," Master Fung, "so then there's only one thing left."

"What's that?" Rai asked

Master Fung held out his hand.

"We shake."

"What?"

"When equals come to an agreement, it customary to shake hands," Master Fung explained, "I believe the term is sealing the deal."

"Equals?"

"Any student I take on is my equal. They submit to my teachings and follow my instructions out of their free will but they are still my equal; nothing more and certainly nothing less."

Rai looked Master Fung's hand for a moment before taking it.

"I'd like that," Rai replied with a grateful smile.

There was a comfortable silence between them before Rai decided to bring up another matter.

"So since we're equals, those that mean I'm allowed to crack bald jokes?"

"No you are not."

"Not even small ones?"

"No."

"Just one, please."

"Rai!"

* * *

_THUD! THUD!_

"Alright, alright," Jack called, "I'm coming."

Jack opened the door and saw Wuya standing there.

"Wuya!" Jack shrieked, quickly covering his vitals.

"Hello Jack," Wuya said, "I've decided to crash here for a while."

"Wait, what?"

Instead of clarifying, Wuya just pushed past Jack. She knew the house by memory and instantly came to the guest bedroom. It hosted a king sized bed, a full sized bathroom and a walk in closest.

"Simplistic but it will have to do," Wuya said, "but I will defiantly have to get rid of these stupid nick-knacks."

Wuya picked up a stone carving to examine it.

"Hey! Put that down," Jack ordered, "After all that you've put me through, give me one good reason why I shouldn't kick you out."

In one effortless movement, Wuya crushed the stoned carving into dust with her left hand.

"There are towels in the top shelf and soap and shampoo in the bathroom," Jack said in his girly voice, "Let me know if you need anything."

**Author's note: And so ends this part of the story. I hoped you liked it, let me know what you think. There is still more to come but now I'll ask for reader opinion. **

**I can either keep posting chapters here or I can say this story is complete and post the new part as a sequel. I am in favour of the first option (saves time for me and stress for readers in regards to finding it, story alerts etc.) and, unless I get an overwhelming motion for the second option, I just go with continuing to update here but I still want to know what you, the readers, would prefer.**

**Bye for now. **


	12. Potential

**Author's note: so with a new month comes a new chapter. Sorry about taking this long to update. Exam season had struck and with the results of these exams deciding whether or not I could graduate this year, they kind of needed to take top priority. But its over and I'm back in the writers seat so on with the story.**

Kimiko yawned as she rubbed the sleep out of her eyes

Kimiko yawned as she rubbed the sleep out of her eyes. She was busy doing her morning round of the temple. She usually did this before training to try and get some oxygen into her muscles. It also gave them a heads up if anything out of the ordinary happened over the night. So far nothing interesting; the plants had finally grown back in the spot where a stray fireball had landed (she still denied any responsibility for that happening), the birds were happily singing, it looked like a nice clear day, Rai was doing something in the courtyard and all of the Shen Gong Wu were still in the vault. All in all the makings of a good day.

"Good morning Kimiko," Rai said.

"Morning," She replied sleepily.

She then did a double take.

_Rai is in the temple?!_

As she looked back she saw that Rai was on one of Master Fungs training devices. It comprised of two platforms with a rope connecting the two. On one platform was a large barrel and on the other one was a bucket. In each hand Rai held a cup. Kimiko watched for a moment. Rai would fill his cups in the barrel, walk along the rope holding the cups out with straight arms then pour the water into the bucket. He would then walk back along the rope holding his arms out straight and refill his cups in the barrel to repeat the process.

"Uh Rai, what are you doing?"

"Isn't obvious," Rai replied, "I've decided to give up demondry and instead dedicate my life to performance art."

"Performance art?!"

"Why yes, this whole thing is symbolic," Rai explained, "the two platforms represent good and evil, on one I take something, on the other I give something, movement of the water represents how we are all connected, as we exhale someone else inhales creating a balance, the water itself represents life, the rope represents the fine line I must walk between humanity and savagery, the way I hold my arms represent how I offer all I am to the world and the sash around my waist represent what I'm going to hang my self with if I have to do this for much longer."

"Keep going," a voice ordered.

Kimiko turned to see Master Fung standing there, she had been so busy paying attention to Rai that she hadn't noticed him standing there.

"I'm doing it but I still think this is a worthless exercise," Rai grumbled.

"Rai," Master Fung replied, "we agreed that…"

"I would follow your lessons, what ever form they may take," Rai finished, "I know I know. I still don't see what the point of this is."

"The point is for you to learn control and balance," Master Fung explained, "this exercise helps achieve this through improving your physical balance and is great step towards finding your centre."

"I'd probably have a better time finding my centre breaking a few boards," Rai replied.

"Why yes," Master Fung said in a voice that was probably the closest he got to sarcastic, "that is indeed a far more worthwhile exercise, especially since so often one must go into battle against a _tree_."

"Hey, you spend a night in the Howchey forest and you'll see how useful a skill that is."

"What the heck is going?" Kimiko asked.

Before either could answer, Dojo came slivering past, humming a merry tune.

"Do bee do, happy day dee dee dee, sun shine la la la, words I can't rememeber, bop she bop, Oh Hi there," He said to Master Fung and Kimiko, seemingly not having noticed Rai.

Rai put the cups down and hung upside-down on the rope so that his face was level with Dojo.

"Well isn't someone a cheerful little dragon today," Rai said.

"You bet I am," Dojo replied, "the sun is shining, the Wu are safe and that no-good dragon munching demon Rai is nowhere…near…here."

As he finished his sentence, Dojo turned to come face to face with Rai. Rai took the moment to give him a big toothy smile.

"Hi there, long time no see."

"Aaaaaaaaah!"

Dojo ran screaming and hid behind Master Fung.

"Oh come on Dojo," Rai said, "why must there be bad blood between us. I have always liked Dragons, especially if served with rice."

"Rai that wasn't funny 1500 years ago and it isn't funny now."

Clay and Omi came running in.

"What little girl needs our help?" Omi asked.

"Thank goodness you're here," Dojo said before pointing at Rai, "DEMON!! VANQUISH! SLAY! UNLEASH GRAND SCALE BUTT WHIP!"

Before anyone reacted, Master Fung stepped forward, in between the Dragons and Rai."

"There will be no unleashing of grand scale butt whip," Master Fung ordered to the Dragons before turning to Rai, "complete the exercise, the bucket is not yet full."

"Alright," Rai grumbled.

He spun round the rope a couple of times and then disconnected, having gained enough momentum to fly upwards and land back on the platform with the barrel. He picked up the two cups to continue the exercise.

"Master Fung, why is Rai following your orders?" Omi asked.

"Because Omi, Rai has agreed to become my student." Master Fung replied.

"Say what?" Clay asked.

"Rai has agreed to become my student," Master Fung repeated, "he is going to be living and training here in the temple."

This came as a complete surprise to the Dragons.

"But Master Fung, why do you need a new student?" Omi asked, doe-eyed, "You already have **me**."

"Oh keep your robe on;" Rai said irritably, "I'm not here to learn to be a Dragon."

"You're not?"

"No Omi, he isn't," Master Fung, "he is here to learn the ways of balance and control. There will possibly be times that he while train alongside you three but he will have to learn things that you three already have. Besides, you are at a level that you do not need me watching over every activity that you do."

"Well that is true," Omi said proudly, "The level I have achieved is most impressive."

"He means all three Dragons," Rai informed him.

"Oh right," Omi said as he shrunk under the glares his team mates were giving him.

"THIS IS AN OUTRAGE!!"

Everyone turned to the direction of the voice to see Master Gao come barging in. He walked up to Master Fung.

"You have gone too far this time," Master Gao declared, "I'll not only see to it that you not only lose your title but that you are removed from this temple."

Master Sun came scurrying in.

"Master Gao please calm down," he said, "let me explain."

"Calm down?" Master Gao "after all that has happened Master Fung now has the audacity to let this retched, hell spawn monstrosity into the temple and train him!"

"Ok now you're just being mean," Rai said.

"You don't understand," Master Sun said, "the council has approved this."

"WHAT?!"

"The council has decided that we have enough evidence to prove that Rai is sincere about making fresh start," Master Sun explained, "it is only right that we give him a chance to do that."

"And so we are going to let this demon train here?" Master Gao asked.

"I understand where you are coming from, normally the temple wouldn't allow something like this out of principle," Master Sun said in attempted diplomacy, "this situation is however different. Rai has made a rather sizable payment for the honour training here."

"How sizable?"

"10, 000 Yuan a day and a years payment in advance."

Four jaws hit the ground. The moment of silence gave Master Sun a chance to continue talking.

"If you still find this an unreasonable exchange, you may go bring your case to the council. They will not, however, take kindly to any further harassment of Master Fung or his pupils."

Master Gao did not reply but left in a huff, probably trying to not justify that statement with a response. Master Sun gave Master Fung an apologetic smile before walking off himself.

"Well that went down pretty well," Rai said as he leaned against the barrel, "I see we're going to be good friends."

He took a sip from one of the cups. Master Fung just rolled his eyes.

"Wait," Dojo said, "You mean to tell me that I'm being sacrificed for mere money?"

"Dojo, you are not being sacrificed," Master Fung replied, "As my student Rai will not be allowed to eat you."

"So you mean if I quit I'd be allowed to eat him?" Rai asked, almost seeming hopeful.

"Rai," Master Fung warned.

"Ok I get it," Rai said, "No Dragon Gumbo on the menu."

"Good, now I will leave you to get properly acquainted with my other students."

Master Fung then turned and walked away peacefully. Dojo on the other took one last look at Rai before running off screaming. Rai jumped down onto the ground, Kimiko walked right up to him.

"What are you playing at?" Kimiko asked.

"Excuse me?"

"Yesterday you wanted nothing more to do with the temple," Kimiko continued, "and now all of the sudden you're paying Master Fung to train you."

"I'd have to agree that this is more confusing than a rodeo clown doing Shakespeare," Clay said.

Rai shrugged.

"So I changed my mind," Rai said, "I'm a wind demon; being unpredictable is in my nature."

"And it seems that so too would being unable to give a straight answer," Clay said.

"Now you're catching on," Rai said, "now if you don't mind I'm going to go get some breakfast."

He was about to leave when Omi grabbed his hand. Rai raised a questioning eyebrow until Omi placed something into his hand. Rai saw that it was the medallion that had been around his neck.

"I realised after you left that I still had this," Omi explained, "It is yours so I would understand you wanting it returned."

Rai took a moment to examine it. Since Wuya's spell had been broken it no longer had any power. No harm could come from keeping it and yet…

"Hey would any of you be carrying Wu with a bit of bang?" Rai asked.

"Well buddy," Clay said, "I just happen to have the Eye of Dashi with me."

"Perfect, can I borrow it for a moment?"

Clay looked at him suspiciously but pulled out the Eye of Dashi and handed it Rai.

"Thanks, now you guys might want to take a couple of steps back."

The Dragons obliged, Rai twirled the medallion before releasing, sending it flying up into the sky.

"EYE OF DASHI!" He shouted.

Lightning shot upwards, colliding with the medallion. What resulted was a great explosion and a brilliant display of green light and smoke. Rai meanwhile gave an involuntary yet seemingly pleasurable shudder.

"You have no idea how good that felt," He said.

Clay leaned in so that only Kimiko could hear him.

"We'll have to keep an eye on him but I reckon he's starting to grow on me."

* * *

Master Gao walked out of the meditation chamber in a real huff. The council had made some foolish decisions before but never one so completely moronic, short sighted and stupid.

"Wait Master Gao."

Master Gao looked back to see Master Cai, one of the members of the council.

"I take that you were not entirely satisfied with our answer," he said.

"That is correct," Master Gao replied, "if only you were as able to see a situation for what it is back in there where it would have been useful."

Master Cai shook his head slightly.

"Really it is not good to insult the one council member on your side."

"On my side?" Master Gao asked, "where were back there when I could have used one on my side."

Master Cai look around.

"Follow me."

He lead Master Gao to a corner behind a building where he was sure no one was around to hear what was about to be said. After one last check to make sure no-one was listening, Master Cai took in a deep breath before he started talking.

"Even if I had voiced my agreement with you back in the chamber, it would have done nothing to help your fool's errand."

"Fool's errand? But you said you…"

"I am on your side, I agree with what you were trying to achieve but not with how you tried to achieve it. Trying to go head to head with the council and make them change their mind pointless at the best of times but **you** trying it is a lost cause, especially when one of Master Fungs decisions is concerned."

"What is that supposed to mean?"

"Master Gao, you are raciest, sexiest and if you were any more unmoving in your ways we could probably use you as a support beam. Any semblance of openness to new ideas that you may posses goes out the window when Master Fung is involved. You have opposed nearly every choice that he has made and most of us have given thought to the possibility that you oppose his ideas simply out of principle. Now Master Fungs decisions have not always made sense but they have gotten results. So now nearly every request he brings to the council goes through without a hitch and your objections do nothing more than make members want approve the request just to spite you."

During Master Cai's short monolog, Master Gao had developed a minor twitch in his left eye.

"So you are saying that I should just let this Demon walk freely here in the temple?"

"No but you just reminded me that I forget to mention how you suffer from a one track mind. What I'm saying is that complaining to the council will get you nowhere. If we are to remove the demon from the temple, we must change our tactics."

"So we murder him while no-one is looking and make it look like and accident."

Master Cai raised an eyebrow.

"I'm not even going to go in explaining how many things are wrong with that idea," he replied, "I was thinking of something more subtle and less bloody."

Master Gao looked puzzled but still intrigued.

"Go on."

"Master Fung wants to train him, that's fine but that doesn't mean that we have to make this temple demon friendly. With the Shen Gong Wu reactivated and the evils that have been released, I feel that perhaps we are over due in making sure our temple is free of _unwanted spirits_."

Master Cai went on to explain his plan to Master Gao, both unaware of the bird that was watching them from over head.

Or of the bean that was ridding it.

* * *

Kimiko walked into the kitchen and saw Rai's butt sticking out of the fridge. He must have heard someone come in because he quickly pulled his head out and looked.

"Oh it's you," Rai said, "want me to get you something?"

"No I'm good," Kimiko replied.

Kimiko stood there for a moment before she got the courage to ask what was on her mind.

"What are you doing here?"

"Do you mean what I'm doing here in this 'refrigerator' or what am I doing here as in existentially? Because the first one is kinda obvious and I really have no idea what my purpose for being on this earth is so the second is a pointless question."

"I mean what you are doing here in this temple training under Master Fung and this time I want a straight answer."

Rai came out of the fridge.

"Look there isn't really much to it, Master Fung came to me, made his sales pitch and I accepted it," Rai explain, "though it reminds me. Just how much of our late night stroll did you tell the others about?"

"Only that you gave me the Spear to save Master Fung's job."

"Nothing else?"

Kimiko shook her head.

"Good, let's keep it that way."

Kimiko looked clearly confused.

"Why? You're a part of this temple now."

"That doesn't mean that they need to know this stuff. Besides, what use is that piece of information to them?"

"Well I don't know," Kimiko replied, "maybe they might know a way to cure you."

"Cure me?" Rai asked, "Honestly you make me sound like I'm carrying a disease."

"You know what I mean."

"Yeah I do," Rai replied, "and I also know that it's pointless trying. I've been hit by some of the strongest cases of demon cleansing mojo around and squat has happened, this can't be fixed and it's a waste of time trying. Most people would instead of curing me just opt to end my 'pained' existence and right now I don't want these monks to have anymore reason to kill me."

Rai looked Kimiko in the eyes.

"Look, I understand that you are trying to help but I suggest that you just get used to this demon mug because its here to stay."

Kimiko couldn't believe this; Rai wasn't even open to the idea of getting help to find a cure. Despite this Kimiko gave a shrug.

"Alright, we'll keep it our secret."

"Good."

Rai walked out of the kitchen, chewing on a slice of cold pizza he had found in the fridge.

_Ok Rai,_ Kimiko thought,_ you don't the temple to know that's fine but that doesn't mean I can't look for a solution myself._

* * *

The old lady looked on at the temple from her vantage point, stroking her kitten.

"So the child has returned to the temple, I'm glad. It'll be good for him to make some friends after all this time and he'll learn some valuable lessons there."

The kitten meowed in agreement, the lady chuckled as she stratched his ear.

"Legba was right, the child has potential, but we'll see if he has what it takes when the time comes."

**Authors note: Ok I hope you liked that, let me know what you think. Now incase it wasn't clear. the Yuan is the Chinese form of currency and at the time this chapter was posted 100 US exchanged to roughly 700 Yuan. **


	13. Awkward

**Author's note: Here is the new chapter for Demon of Wind I hope you enjoy it. Also as some people may notice I've changed te summery of the story, I hope its ok, if not I'm open to suggestion but anyway, on with the story.**

**Edit: This chapter has now been edited by my brand new Beta, ****dArkliTe-sPirit**.

Kimiko, Clay and Omi had finished their chores and were about to put away the cleaning stuff so that they could go on their break.

"Hey," Clay said, "any idea where our resident demon went."

"Not a clue," Kimiko replied. "I haven't seen him since Master Fung was training him."

"Neither have I," said Omi, "and I would have thought that as a fellow pupil of Master Fung, that he would have helped us with the chores."

"Yeah, I asked Master Fung about that," Clay explained. "Turns out he did his share while we were sleeping."

"Oh, that's good then."

They came to the broom closet. When Kimiko opened the door, she jumped back in surprise. Inside the closet was Rai. He was sitting very still, not a muscle moving, his eyes closed.

"Uh, what do ya think he is doing?" Clay asked.

"I will investigate," Omi said.

He inched up towards Rai. He inspected him from top to bottom. He then poked him. Rai opened one eye and looked at Omi.

"What?" he asked, clearly irritated.

"Excuse me Rai," Omi said politely, "may I ask what you are doing?"

"What does it look like I'm doing?"

"Well, if I did not know any better, I would say that you were asleep," Omi replied. "However I know better."

"And it is so fortunate that you do," Rai replied. "The truth is that I have actually been rallying the cleaning products to rise up against you oppressive humans. Come the next blood moon, we will strike and spread our lemony freshness throughout the whole world."

"Really?"

"No, numbskull, I was actually trying to get some sleep."

Rai closed his eye again. Omi paused for a moment before poking him again.

"Yes?"

"Dojo informed us that you did not require sleep," Omi explained.

"Yeah and that cowardly two-legged gecko also thinks that I eat dragons," Rai replied.

Rai closed his eyes before being poked by Omi again.

"You mean you do not devour dragons?" Omi asked

"No, I don't need the protein that badly," Rai replied. "There was a misunderstanding ages ago and I never got around to correcting it. I also found it fun messing with that dragon's head."

"Then why are you giving up the 'I spy'?" Omi asked

"I believe the term is 'charade'," Rai replied, "and it's not really like I'm giving it up. You can go right ahead and tell Dojo. He'll probably just say that it's me trying to trick him into a false sense of security. That is just proof of where unnecessary paranoia gets you."

At that Rai tried to go back to sleep until the dreaded poking returned.

"Alright, poke me again and you'll lose that finger," Rai warned.

"Would you mind getting out of that closet so that we can put these things away?" Omi asked, holding up the cleaning stuff.

"Alright," Rai grumbled, "it's not like I was getting any sleep with you guys barging in like this."

Rai got up and walked off, muttering to himself things like "letting sleeping demons lie" and "no more privacy than a goldfish".

"Hey Rai!" Kimiko called.

Rai turned back.

"Yes?"

"Just remember that we have lunch in half an hour."

"So?"

"Well you will be eating with us, won't you?" Kimiko asked.

"I don't know, would I?" Rai asked back.

"We are all Master Fung's students," Omi said, "it would only make sense that we share our midday nourishment together."

"I'll think about it," Rai replied as he walked off.

As they packed the stuff away, Kimiko noticed the Clay had a strange look on his face.

"Does need sleep, doesn't eat dragons," he muttered, "we knew next to nothing about him to begin with and what we did 'know' is getting proved wrong."

Clay saw the look of concern on Kimiko's face.

"Look I'm not saying that we can't trust him but I my mind would still be a bit more at ease if only we knew a bit more about him than mere rumour."

Kimiko swallowed as she tried to hold down. What she knew would probably be more than enough to make Clay satisfied but she had promised that she would keep it a secret. Which reminded her that she still had some research that she wanted to do before lunch.

* * *

The three Wudai Warriors came to the table where lunch was being served. As they walked up they saw that Rai was sitting at the table. He already had a large pile of food.

"Glad you decided to to join us," Kimiko said.

Rai gave a small acknowledging nod. Clay on the other hand seemed messmerised the amount of food on Rai's plate.

"Now thats an awful amount of food for one person," He said, "How about I help you eat some of it."

As Clay reached for some of Rai's food, Rai stabbed Clay's sleeve with a chopstick, pinning it to the table. Rai then held the other chopstick to Clay's throat.

"Steal from me and I'll show you the Rai style of accupuncture," Rai warned.

Rai then realised the looks he was getting from the others and how bad this looked. He gave a small cough.

"What I meant to say is that I have some business to attend to," He said quickly, "I better take this meal to go."

Rai picked up his plate and ran for it before anyone had a chance to stop him.

"Well that went well," Kimiko muttered.

"Really?" Omi asked, "I thought it went quite badly."

Kimiko just slapped her self in the forehead.

"Uh, little help here?" Clay asked as he tried to pull the chopstick out of the table.

* * *

Rai walked out into the garden, finely out of hiding after the lunch incident. It was twilight so it was a wonderful time to enjoy scenery. The setting sun caused shadows to fall in strange ways, creating a familiar but almost mystical world. Rai like this time, the shadows added mystery but the light that was there still prevented the shadows from hiding anything too dangerous. Rai would like to think that but he knew of what dangers could lurk in those shadows, heck he's been one of those dangers.

Shaking his head to clear it of such thoughts, Rai took another look at his surroundings. So here he was, in the garden of the Xiaolin Temple after the first day of training. It hadn't been so bad. The exercises Master Fung gave him were interesting, not exactly things that would help in him in battle but still interesting. The lessons in breathing and meditation could also be useful down the track. Plus his interactions with the others was going well.

_If I run now I can be in the mountain side by nightfall and well away by morning._

Before Rai had a chance to act his train of thought was interrupted when he heard purring and felt something rubbing against his leg. He looked down and saw a very familiar kitten.

"Well hello Hu my imaginary kitty friend," Rai said cheerfully as he bent down to stroke it, "have you come to torment your old pal Rai some more?"

Instead of giving a decent answer, Hu just purred even louder when Rai started to scratch it behind the ear.

"Well," Rai said, "You're cuter than my usual hallucinations, I'll give you that and at least you didn't make me climb another forsaken tree."

"I see you have made a friend."

Rai looked away from Hu to see Master Fung standing there.

"Friend?" Rai asked, not sure what he meant.

"The kitten," Master Fung answered.

Rai took a glance back at Hu.

"You mean you can see him too?"

"Well of course I can see him, since he is right there."

"You mean he is actually there?"

"I believe so."

There was a moment of awkward silence. Hu decided to scamper off. Rai coughed once as he stood up.

"Maybe we should just move on to the next topic."

"As you wish," Master Fung replied, "I have been informed by my other students that the rumour about you not requiring sleep was false."

"Yep and since we are busy debunking rumours, I would just like to say that that incident with the emperor's daughter was completely blown out of proportion."

"That is…good to hear," Master Fung replied, "I have set up a mat in the sleeping quarters for you. I believe it would be more a slightly more comfortable than sleeping in the broom closet."

"That's great of you to offer but you see I don't really stay in one place that long."

"Really?"

"Yeah," Rai replied, "when you grew up being hunted like me, you start sleeping for only relative short bursts and keep changing hiding places so that you won't be so easy to find when you're vulnerable."

Rai then realised that he had just admitted to this guy not only the fact he indeed needed sleep but also how he had managed to avoid being captured when he feel asleep. Why was it that he could be so honest with this guy?

"I understand, it would certainly explain how the rumour of you not needing sleep was started," Master Fung said, "however, I would be a poor teacher if I didn't at least offer you one place where you can sleep. The mat will remain there for you to use if you wish."

"Well…uh…thank you," Rai said.

Master Fung smiled warmly.

"You are very welcome. I would also just like to complement you on your first day of training; you have already made progress I can see that much more will come very soon. Good night, Rai."

Master Fung then walked away. Rai paused as he tried to process all that had just been said.

Well maybe he could stay for just one more night.

* * *

Rai looked out at temple from his tree, sitting on one of the low branches. It was clouded over so there weren't any stars. He was instead thinking great thoughts and assessing his situation. While he was doing this, his copy was sitting out further along the branch.

"So the way I see there is good news and bad new on this situation," Rai said to his copy, "The bad news is that I now have an old lady that somehow knows me to worry about and I have no idea what she could want. The good news is that I didn't imagine the lady and the kitty so I'm not completely crazy."

"Hate to break it to you," The copy said, "but you don't really have good news then. Sure they were real but I'm not so that well and truly proves that you are coo-coo in the head."

"Well yeah," Rai said, "but the difference is that I know that you're not real. If it turned out those two hadn't been real I would really have to believe that I was losing what little of my mind I had left."

The copy nodded.

"You know," Rai said, "I've been wondering, do you think people hear me talking to myself?"

"Yeah it is possible," the copy replied, "but since you never seem to get called up on this I'm starting to believe that these dialogs are all completely internal and your mind is making you think you're speaking out loud to create the illusion that you are actually having a conversation."

"That's messed up," Rai said.

"About as messed up as someone who is asking a hallucination advice on his state of mind," the copy replied, "by the way, you do realise we are being watched."

"Yeah," Rai answered, "I just wanted to finish the conversation before going up and seeing who they are and what they want."

"Fair enough, well catch you later."

As the copy vanished Rai pounced up into a higher branch. There was a screech as Rai pinned a strange bird against the tree.

"Not sure what sort of messed up bird you are," Rai said, "but I don't like being spied on, no matter what the species."

"I must say that this is highly unnecessary," A voice said, "We are merely here to talk."

Rai looked around trying to find the source of the voice until he saw it sitting on a slightly higher branch.

"Bean," Rai said, "long time no see."

"That's Hannibal Bean," the bean corrected.

"Yeah, sure," Rai said, "so why are you here and how much of a head start should I give you before I kick you out?"

"Now there is no need to be hostile," Hannibal said, "I'm simply here to give you a job offer."

"Oh, so Squawky just not doing it for you anymore?" Rai asked. "Look, thanks for the offer but I just quit the minion gig with one wanna-be world conqueror and I'm not in the mood to be shackled up with another one."

"Wanna-be world conqueror? Why I oughta…" Hannibal caught himself before he lost his temper. "I mean, there is a bit of a misunderstanding. I'm not looking for a minion; I was thinking we could be partners."

"Riiiiiiight."

"Us demonic variety need to look out for each other."

"Yeah, I've lasted this long without having a creepy little bean watching over me from on top of a dimension-jumping parrot. I think I can handle it."

"Now, my boy," Hannibal said, "this is a new age and if you hope to survive you will need the help of someone who knows the territory."

"So nice of you to offer, but that's why I'm here at the temple," Rai replied. "The food is good and my back is less likely to get stabbed."

"Rai, my boy, do you honestly believe that this temple is going to keep their word?"

Rai put his hand up.

"Ok, before you start playing mind games, remember, I've got more reason to trust the word of someone on the Xiaolin Side than I do the word of a Heylin vegetable."

The Ying-ying bird's eyes started to glow as it projected an image of two temple monks.

"If we are to remove the demon from this temple, we must change our tactics," the first image said.

"So we murder him while no-one is looking and make it look like an accident," said the second.

The images vanished; Rai stared blankly at the space for a moment before looking at Hannibal.

"Is that it?" Rai asked.

Hannibal gaped.

"Oh, come on," Rai continued. "You probably just showed me part of their conversation. Those lug-heads don't have the guts to actually try to kill me and, even if they tried, there's nothing they can do that I can't handle."

"Open your eyes Rai," Hannibal urged. "The whole temple is probably in on it."

"Just what I expect to hear from a manipulating old bean," Rai said, "I'm not going to jump ship just because some old coots are blowing hot air; come to me with some real proof before saying that I am unsafe here."

"I see that you need a bit more convincing," Hannibal said. "We'll be in touch and soon you'll see that I'm right."

Hannibal hopped onto the Ying-ying bird and flew off. Rai watched him until he was out of sight. He shook his head as he jumped to the ground. The night had brought some new things that he would have to give some serious thought to.

Kimiko walked down the hallway and saw that it was full of pieces of paper with weird chinese symbols on them. She picked one up to inspect it. As she was, Clay came in.

"Hey, what's with all the paper lying all over the place?" Clay asked.

"No idea," Kimiko replied, "maybe someone is playing a prank.

Omi then walked in, he yawned as he looked around.

"Seems like someone has decided to do some temple cleansing," Omi said sleepily.

"Cleansing?"

"Yes," Omi answered, "these are warding and cleansing spells."

"So what are they meant to ward and cleanse?" Kimiko asked.

"Oh the usual, spirits, demons, bad luck, things like that."

"Demons?!"

"Why yes, in fact some of these spells are specifically targeting…demons?!"

When all three clicked onto what this meant, there was a mad dash to get all the pieces of paper from the walls.

"Quick," Kimiko said once they were all down, "we must get rid of these before…whoa."

As they entered the main hall, they saw it was also completely full of these spell papers. In the centre was Master Gao who was looking very pleased with himself.

"Ah the young Wudai Warriors," he said in a disgustingly pleasant voice, "would you be so kind to put those back where you found them."

"Master Gao, I do not understand," Omi said, "What need is there for all these spells."

"Master Cai has brought to our attention how in the dangers that are now very real and the spirits that have been unleashed, the temple should seek to cleans beings that may bring us misfortune."

"Rai wouldn't happen to be one of those beings, would he?" Clay asked, clearly suspicious.

"That sounds like an accusation, future Dragon of Earth," Master Gao said, "Rai has been accepted here in the temple and I can not prevent that. That said, the temple must be allowed to function with out difficultly. As monks of this temple, it is our **duty** to keep it clean in all senses of the word. If that makes this _temple_ unsuitable for him to train in, it will regrettably mean that he will have to seek training elsewhere."

Kimiko grit her teeth, this was nothing more than an attempt to force Rai to leave the temple and everyone here knew it. She was about to give Master Gao a piece of her mind when a voice interrupted them.

"You know this is one of the reasons why I have always pitied the good guys, all this worthless paper work."

Rai had sometime during their conversation walked into the hall and had a look around.

"Rai!" Master Gao said, "uh…how are you feeling?"

"Fit as a fiddle and rearing to go," Rai replied, "Why do you ask?"

Rai then looked again at the spells.

"Oh I get it," Rai said, as if he only just cottoned on to the situation, "you're worried that these spells would affect me."

"It had been a concern," Master Gao answered, clearly lying through his teeth.

"Well no need to be concerned," Rai replied, "I'm completely immune to this kind of magic."

"That is good," Master Gao said.

"I'd say, I'd be toast otherwise, there are some grade A demon killing spells here," Rai said, "you must really hate what ever you are trying get rid of."

Rai pulled one down from the wall.

"Take this one for instance, it was quite popular in southern villages; it could cause a demons blood to boil and slowly cook them from the inside," Rai explained, "though powerful, it is a lot more effective if you actually place it on the demon, like so…"

At that, Rai stuck the piece of paper to his foreward and instantly started screaming.

"THE PAIN! I CAN'T TAKE IT! MAKE IT STOP! MAKE IT STOP!"

Clay, Omi and Kimiko tried to come to his aid but the screams of pain soon turned to peels of laughter.

"You should have seen your faces," Rai said, trying to control his laughter, "you guys honestly fell for it."

He quickly straightened up when he saw the looks the Wudai Warriors were giving him. Slow, excruciating murder would have been a good description.

"Well any way, the point is that you can cleanse away without having to worry about little old me."

"I am glad," Master Gao said through clenched teeth.

"I thought you might be," Rai said brightly as he handed him the spell, "oh and while we're on the topic, you might want to replace the spells you placed in the bathroom. There wasn't any toilet paper so I had to improvise."

Rai walked off, quite satisfied with the eye twitch that last statement had earned him.

As Rai walked the down the corridor, the Wudai Warriors caught up with him. Kimiko elbowed him in the arm.

"That was a cruel joke," Kimiko scolded.

"Oh come on, lighten up," Rai said, "Do guys honestly think that I'd set foot in this temple if I couldn't handle some scroll magic."

"So these anti-demon spells have no effect on you?" Omi asked.

"Not a bit," Rai replied, "which reminds, why exactly are you guys carrying some?"

The Wudai Warriors looked down and in unison realised that they were still holding the spell scrolls they had ripped from the walls. They dropped the scrolls as if they had been burnt and Kimiko quickly tried to explain.

"Well you see we saw these on the walls of the hallway and thought that they would hurt to but then we forgot we still had them when we saw that main and then you came in and well here we are."

"Uh-huh."

After one more glance, Rai just walked off.

"Wait, you believe us, don't you?"

"Come on," Rai said, "breakfast isn't going to eat it self."


	14. Doubt

**Author's note: Hi everyone, I'm back. I'm really sorry about this delay. I have no excuses other my studies resuming and being greeted with a boat load of assignment work as well as me not being satisfied with what I wanted to do with this chapter. As always I thank you so much for your patience and for your reviews.**

**I have even more reason than usual (if that's possible) to thank my reviewers because with your help this story has reached a new milestone. **

**200 REVIEWS!!**

**I thank everyone that took the time to review yet again. You make writing this story that much more enjoyable. **

**Now on with the chapter.**

**Edit: Now edited thanks to my Beta reader dArkliTe-sPirit.**

Rai looked at the temple from his vantage point from the top of the Shen Gong Wu vault also known as the entrance to what had been home sweet home for the last 1500 years. How much had changed in that time? Rai had been actively trying to find that out and yet was certain that he hadn't even finished grazing the surface.

How much had stayed the same? That was a question that he was afraid to answer.

Rai looked at the horizon. Dusk was ending and only a sliver of the sun remained. Seven times since Hannibal Bean had 'warned' Rai of the dangers had Rai stood out and watched the sun set and each time brought a stronger urge to run off in to it.

Rai sighed; it wasn't that he didn't trust the temple, it was, well…ok he didn't trust the temple. He had promised himself that he wouldn't listen to that garbage spouting vegetable but the more he tried to see reasons to trust his safety here at the temple, the more reasons he found to doubt it.

First on the list would be the temple monks but the fact of the matter was that despite them being so heck bent on getting rid of Rai, they were doing a lousy job at it. In the last seven days Rai had seen them try scroll magic, chants, incense, painted symbols, garlic, mushrooms; they even covered the floor with blessed lotus petals. The ultimate low point for them though would have to have been when Master Gao tried to chase Rai away with bamboo cane that was 'said' to have been blessed by seven of the greatest chi-wizards of the Xia Dynasty.

_Be gone, vile demon!" Master Gao shouted, holding the bamboo cane above his head, "be gone!"_

_Rai just stood there, making no effort to hide his amusement._

"_I said be gone!"_

_Master Gao whacked Rai across the face with the cane. Master Gao then lifted the bamboo cane in triumph._

"_I have done it! I have banished the demon!"_

"_Ahem."_

_Master Gao looked down to see Rai standing exactly where he had been before, only difference being that there was a red line across Rai's face and he was definitely no longer amused._

"_Eep!"_

Rai smirked, that had been the day Master Gao learned a valuable lesson about not trusting something that was bought from the same guy selling the genuine engraved sword of "Attila the Hut".

No, the monks weren't a problem. He knew they didn't want him there so nothing they did would be unexpected. If by some miracle they found a method to get rid him that would actually work, he'd be long gone before they could use it. The real problems were the Wudai Warriors.

They said that Rai could stay, but then he walked in on them holding magic, demon-killing scrolls. Rai didn't rule out the possibility that they were telling the truth but there was a reason why Rai had been able to survive this long. When all was said and done, they were only human, about as bound to their word as Rai was. And even if only one of them decided to turn, the rest would undoubtedly side with that one out of loyalty.

The question would have to be who was most likely to turn. Well, first on the Wudai roster was the Dragon of Earth. Rai had to admit that he was starting like Clay but his loyalty was only to the Wudai warriors and to Master Fung. If he thought that Rai was a danger to either, he would snap him like a toothpick. If Clay had just been a musclehead Rai wouldn't have been worried but Rai was starting to see that Clay was smarter than he appeared. The sheer fact that he was able to dress himself in the morning was proof of that. What was making Rai more nervous was the fact Clay was poking round trying to find out more about who Rai was.

Sure, he wasn't asking Rai directly but he was questioning others in the temple, including Dojo. Rai almost felt sorry for Clay considering that, through myths and rumours, Rai was claimed to have been the offspring of probably every wind monster, demon and deity of the era, except Feng Po Po.

The chances of him finding factual information was slim to none, but if Clay found answers that he didn't like, then Rai could be in trouble.

Next on the list was Kimiko. Rai felt a lead weight drop into his stomach. He didn't like the idea of having to think of her as a threat but it was impossible to not think of her as one. She knew too much about Rai and Rai was letting her get too close.

Yes, she was the one that released him; yes, she did try to make him feel welcome and yes, she did have a lovely pair…of eyes, but that didn't mean that Rai could let his guard down.

Especially after what happened a few days ago.

* * *

__

_Rai walked up to Kimiko who was working on the computer. _

"_Hey there," Rai said._

_Kimiko jumped and quickly closed the windows that had been open her computer._

"_What are you up to?" Rai asked._

"_Oh nothing," Kimiko said quickly, "checking email, shopping online…you know…girl stuff. Well look at the time! I better go do…whatever it is I'm meant to do this time of day."_

_Kimiko ran off before Rai could ask her any further questions._

_After she was completely out of sight Rai sat in front of the computer._

"_Alright," Rai muttered, "time to see if that guide to computers was of any use."_

_Rai opened Kimiko's internet browser, went to history and changed the view setting to order visited today. The first five websites got Rai's attention._

_**Defeating the inner demon**_

_**Overcoming the demon**_

_**Cleanse demonic influence now**_

_**The nature of demons and how to destroy them**_

_**Purifying the demons in our lives**_

_**...**_

_**...**_

_**Eep!**_

Rai yet again knew that this was all open to interpretation, but nature had a way of killing off the stupid ones; them, and the puny ones, which brought to mind the final problem; Omi.

Sure the little guy had saved Rai both from Chase and from Wuya but that didn't mean he fully trusted him. Being indebted to the small warrior wasn't enough to make him overlook a certain detail brought up in a recent sparring match.

_Come on Cheeseball," Rai taunted as he dodged a leg sweep by jumping into a tree, "you're going to have to do better than that."_

"_I will be victorious," Omi claimed._

"_Yeah, not happening," Rai said as he climbed up further into the tree and out of sight._

_Omi leapt into the tree to chase only to be introduced to Rai's foot. Omi flew out of the tree and land on the ground in daze. As he started to regain focus, Rai leapt of the tree, ready to pounce._

"_Repulse the monkey!"_

That move was a Chase Young special and, from what Rai had found out, Chase hadn't been on the Xiaolin for a long time; how would Omi know that move? And if he had learnt it from Chase, why would Omi betray him?

When Rai was brought to present he looked down to see Omi walking to the vault, carrying a bunch of Wu.

"Hey Omi," Rai said as he jumped down.

"ARGH!"

Omi shout and threw the Wu up in fright. He turned to and saw who it was.

"Oh, it is only you Rai," Omi said, "I knew that."

"Of course you did," Rai replied as he helped Omi pick up the Wu.

Once the Wu had been picked up, Rai handed them back to Omi and went to open the door for him.

"Ok I've been meaning to ask you," Rai said once they were in the vault, "where did you learn 'repulse the monkey'?"

Omi shot a questioning glance towards Rai but still chose to answer.

"Chase Young taught it to me," Omi explained. "Back when I was a Xiaolin apprentice, an evil spirit took hold of Clay. In our search to find Clay, he came to me and taught me a few lessons that proved valuable to stopping the spirit and rescuing Clay."

"And where does him now being part of the demon club fit into this?"

"We later learned that he was seeking to take me as his apprentice," Omi said. "He succeeded for short while but then my friends rescued me."

Rai just nodded his head to acknowledge that he had heard what Omi said.

"I know that, as a Xiaolin warrior, I should not use a technique created by the Heylin side," Omi continued, "but it is one that has never failed me and it does not feel as evil as others he has taught me."

"That's because it's not a Heylin technique."

"Come again?"

"Chase invented that move back when we were fighting," Rai explained. "I know that because I was the first guy he used it on."

"Amazing," Omi said in awe, "inventing such a powerful technique at such an early stage."

"Yeah," Rai said almost dismissively, "he was pretty good."

Omi's awed expression suddenly turned grim.

"And yet he turned evil," Omi said.

Rai raised an eyebrow.

"Look I appreciate the honesty, the bi-polarism not so much."

"I was merely thinking," Omi said, "Chase Young had been one of the greatest Xiaolin Warriors and yet he chose to drink the Lao Mang Lone Soup and become evil. If someone like him can become corrupted what hope is there for the rest of us?"

"Hope?" Rai asked. "Kid, hope is overrated. I spent nearly all my demonic life with the only thing I could hope for was to be alive to see the next sunrise. Humans are a lot of things, but the one thing that's for certain is that they choose what they are. If Chase chose to become a demon, then he wasn't that 'pure' to begin with. If a person decides to be a monster, they have no to blame but themselves."

Omi stared at Rai, not sure how to respond.

"So I suggest you quit worrying about what Chase chose and just focus about what you choose to be," Rai finished as he started to walk away.

Omi gave small nod as he started to enter the vault.

"Hey, Omi."

Omi turned back to see that Rai had stopped walking.

"You know back at the clearing, when Chase told you to step aside," Rai said, "if the Chase I knew had been your position, he would have just let me die."

Omi took a moment to process that simple but meaningful statement.

"You did not have to tell me that," Omi said finally, "but I am glad that you did."

__

_The child ran through the forest as fast as he could. He stung from the branches slapping in his face, his ankles hurt, and his lungs burned, but he didn't dare to slow down. Blood flowed from the wound where the arrow had grazed trickled down his chest. Behind him he heard,_

"_Stop the demon, it must not be allowed to escape."_

_As he ran, he risked a single glance back, the same question repeating in his mind._

_**Why?**_

_He looked back forward, but not in time to stop himself as he ran off the cliff_

* * *

Rai shot forward, holding his knife out against an invisible enemy. As his vision cleared he remembered where he was; in the temple, hiding in a dark corner, having on of his nightly naps. He stood up, put the knife away and walked to a nearby bath room. When he was there, he caught some water into his cupped hands and splashed and splashed it into his face. He let out a shiver.

"It's been a while since I've had that dream," Rai muttered to him self

_It's also been a while since you've done something this stupid._

Rai looked up into the mirror and, instead of seeing his reflection, a pair of silver eyes stared back at him.

"Oh great," Rai said. "Now I've got to listen to you."

_If you listened to me more often, we wouldn't get into messes like this. You're letting your guard down again. This won't end well and you know it._

"Shut it," Rai said. "You lost your say in my life a long time ago."

_Just because you don't like what I'm saying doesn't mean that it isn't true._

"It's **not** true, these people are different, this my first chance at having a home in a long time and I'm not going to let you ruin it."

_Me ruin it? I'm what kept you alive for this long._

"And what a _glorious_ life it has been," Rai said mockingly.

_Oh yes, why not blame me? _The voice said sarcastically, _because I'm the one who has made people hunt you…and that priestess betray you._

"Shut up," Rai warned.

_You actually believed her, didn't you? All those honey words about how she would protect you and find a way to cure you. You believed her and walked right into a trap. Tell me, what was it? Her sweet voice, her gentle touch, her kind eyes, the whispered promises, the soothing magic or the fact that she was the first person in a long time that didn't try to kill you on the spot. _

"This time is different," Rai said. "I'll make it different."

_Rai, you can't make this any different because you can not make yourself any different from what you are. You are a demon, you don't feel kindness or compassion from others, shelter or security, you don't even feel the sun's warm rays. You are a freak and because of what you are, every human is your enemy, including those in this temple._

Rai gripped the sides of the basin tightly.

_Give up this foolish charade. You can not change what you are so embrace it._

"You're wrong, this temple isn't the enemy, you are," Rai said, "for as long as you've been here, you've told me to embrace this, to accept it and be what the people called me but all that has ever brought me was more pain. I am through with listening to you, I can't change what I am but I can change _who_ I am. The world has changed and so will I."

Rai walked down the corridor

The eyes in the mirror vanished.

Rai let out a breath before turning to the sound of a polite cough. Standing near by was Master Fung.

"Uh hi," Rai said awkwardly. "How long have you been standing there?"

"I am not sure. I don't usually bother to time myself."

"Ok, and how much did you see?"

"Nothing that can not be discredited as the delusion of old age," Master Fung replied.

Following a brief awkward silence, Rai decided to continue the conversation.

"So are you up for a reason or did you decide to try to beat me in creepiness? Because if that's the case I could always tell you a tale involving a moronically curious monkey and some misplaced…"

"That won't be necessary," Master Fung interjected, having a slight tinge of fear in his voice. "I was unable to sleep so I decided to do a late-night spiritual cleanse."

"And what's that?" Rai asked, pointing to the bowl Master Fung was holding.

"Chocolate ice cream," Master Fung said. "Even Masters can indulge once in a while, and I find it helps the cleansing."

Rai just stared at Master Fung.

"Would you like some?" Master Fung asked. "I've brought two bowls."

Rai looked at Master Fung's hand where another bowl seemed to have materialised.

"Um…ok," Rai said, not entirely sure what "chocolate ice cream" was.

After following Master Fung to a small room, they both sat down by a table and started to eat. Rai took time to savour the taste of this strange new food. Master Fung decided to break the silence.

"You know, I have done some research," Master Fung said.

"Really?"

"Yes, and I can only hope that the incident with the emperor's daughter was blown out of proportion."

Rai muttered something before returning to his ice cream.

"There is something I've been meaning to ask you," Master Fung said. "How are you finding your stay?"

"Great! Perfect! Never better!" Rai said, being a tad too cheerful.

Master Fung raised an eyebrow.

"So there is nothing wrong?"

"Of course not! Why would you think that? Absolutely nothing wrong! Zip! Nada! Nothing!"

"The demon doth protest too much, methinks."

Rai looked confused.

"What bar tab was Confucius on when he said that?"

"Never mind," Master Fung grumbled as he realised that his wit was lost on the young demon.

Rai fidgeted as he tried to find the right way to ask his next question.

"Master Fung, I've got to ask you something. Why did you trust me?"

"What do you mean?"

"Look at me. I'm a demon, I worked for Wuya, and just now you walked in on me picking a fight with a mirror. How do you know I won't stab you guys in the back the first chance I get?"

"I don't," Master Fung said, "but my instincts told me that you wouldn't."

"So that's it?" Rai asked. "You trust me solely on your instincts?"

"Well not instincts alone. I also had faith in the potential value you might find in my lessons."

"So you believe my loyalty to the temple will remain so long as I have something to lose?"

"No but I believe that it is the foundation that loyalty and trust can be built on."

"I'm not sure I'm following you."

Master Fung took in a deep breath.

"True loyalty will only exist if you value each other by more than merely what each person stands to lose or gain. However trust needs to start somewhere. If you do not feel certain about your place here, perhaps it is because you believe that there is nothing that we will lose if we betray you."

"Well is there anything that the temple will lose?" Rai asked. "I mean no offence, but it's not like it's considered hypocrisy to change the rules when demons are involved. I'm trying my best to trust this temple but…"

Rai trailed off, realising he was probably digging himself into a hole.

"You have had no reason to trust the Xiaolin side before, or even humans in general," Master Fung finished.

Rai nodded. Master Fung smiled kindly as he put a hand on Rai's shoulder.

"Despite this you have remained here in the temple for a week already," Master Fung said. "That proves that you are earnest about staying and trying to trust us."

"Well, yeah," Rai conceded, "but that doesn't help me."

"Well then, the only suggestion I can offer is that you take to the time to think and reflect on what you can offer this temple."

"You mean like more money?"

"No," Master Fung said. "It should be something that you alone can offer this temple that is unique to you."

"Unique to me?" Rai asked. "Hm, not really sure."

Rai stuck his stuck is spoon into the bowl and heard a hollow clink. He looked down and saw that it was empty. Rai sighed sadly.

"Face it, aside from my wind powers, fighting skills and exceptionally good looks I have about as much to offer as this bowl."

Master Fung smiled kindly as he stood up.

"Well in that case, you have a lot to offer."

Master Fung stood up and walked over to a confused Rai. He then took the bowl from Rai and stood it on its side.

"You can look at this bowl and say that it's empty and thus say that it holds no value or…"

He spun the bowl. Rai watched the bowl spinning, almost mesmerized at how effortlessly it was spinning on its side.

"…you can open your mind to the possibilities and see its true potential."

The bowl slowed down and finally landed up right, suddenly filled again with chocolate ice cream. Rai stared in sheer awe.

"Man, you've got to teach me that. Though chances are I'm going to look up and see that you've van…"

Rai looked up and saw that Master Fung was gone.

"…nished."

Rai shrugged as he picked up the bowl. He started looking around the room in hopes of finding an answer.

_Open my mind to the possibilities._

_Find some unique value._

_Open my mind to the possibilities._

_Find some unique value._

_Open my mind to the possibilities._

_Find some unique value._

_Open my mind to the possibilities._

_Lose focus and forget what I'm looking for._

_Rinse, lather and repeat_

Rai's gaze finally fell onto a bookcase in the corner of the room.

_Well not much but it's the most interesting thing in this room so I'll just stare at it until I get an epiphany. Though I can't believe how much of a library this place is. Who'd have thought that a place founded by Dashi would place such value on bo…whoa…there we go!_

Having found an answer Rai stood up and started to run out of the room, he then ran back to the return to his half eaten ice cream.

_Epiphanies can wait for morning; ice cream can't._

**Author's note : I hope you enjoyed this chapter, let me know what you think. Now onto the educational segment of the chapter (I should really come up with a name for it).**

**The Xia Dynasty of China, dated between 2100 BC–1600 BC, is the first dynasty to be described in ancient historical records such as Records of the Grand Historian and Bamboo Annals. Though there is disagreement pertaining to the actual existence of the dynasty, there is archaeological evidence which points to its possible existence. **

**Feng Po Po is a Chinese Wind deity. She was depicted as an old woman riding a tiger. She was specifically in charge of gentle breezes and when they weren't loose, she would store them in her magic bag.**


	15. Worth

**Author's Note: I can not say how sorry I am for taking this long to update. For my final semester in the degree that I was studying I had to, as part of course work full time while at the same time doing research paper, that meant that I had next to no free time for writing but now I am finished and back in the writer's seat. I apologise and promise that my next update will be no where near this slow.**

**Well on with the story. I hope you like it and let me know what you think.**

Kimiko gave a slight stretch while consciousness came to her. She hadn't opened her eyes yet but instead was savouring the feeling of a good night's sleep. As her eyes opened they were greeted by a pair of pale green orbs. As her eyes started to focus, she noticed that they had cat slits. Kimiko made a mental note to get rid of the cat.

As soon as some of her brain started to function she remembered that this temple didn't have a cat.

Kimiko's eyes shot open to reveal Rai's face about a 4 inches away from her's. His expression seemed eager, almost expectant.

"Hi," he said simply.

Kimiko tried for a moment to inch her face away from Rai but realised it was useless considering that she was flat on her back with him being in a position that could only described as as close to straddling her without making body contact.

"Er…hi," Kimiko said nervously, "what are you doing?"

"Observing," Rai explained, "since I have nothing better to do while you of the sleep dependant temple dwellers waste your nights, I have decided to spend my nights observing the subtle yet majestic movements of your face while you slumber."

Kimiko swallowed involuntarily as her mouth seemed to go remarkably dry all of a sudden.

"Wow Rai, that is really…"Kimiko stopped when she realised something, "wait, you have to sleep as well."

Rai just gave a wide grin.

"I'm impressed, most people aren't that quick off the draw when they have just woken up. But you've got to admit that I had you going for a second. Relax, I was walking by and I saw you were giving the first signs of waking up so I decided to have some fun."

"And by fun you mean invade my personal space, potentially give me a heart attack and raise your creepy factor to amazing new levels considering the fact you are a 1500 year old demon with the mind & body of a teenager and the humour of a sociopath."

"And here I was afraid that you would never understand me."

Kimiko's chance at reply was intercepted by a familiar voice.

"Uh…what is going on here?"

Both Rai and Kimiko distorted their bodys slightly to see Clay standing in the 'doorway' of Kimiko's cubical. Any potential awkwardness was prevented by Rai's never slowing mouth.

"Well you see, I had just cornered my prey and was about to dislocate my jaw so that I could devour her whole," Rai explained, "if you're going to attack me, I suggest you do it when I'm at the halfway mark of devouring her; that's when I'd be most vulnerable."

"Dang it Rai! When someone walks in on you in a situation like this you are meant jump away and try full heartedly to convince me that this isn't what this looks like."

Rai took one last look down at Kimiko before standing up and giving a shrug.

"As much fun as 'guess what the demon was doing' is, I was actually here to say that we have some business to discuss after breakfast, so please don't make me wait long. Oh and Kimiko, lets do this again sometime."

As Rai started to walk off, Kimiko quickly jumped up and ran over to him.

"Rai wait," Kimiko said, "we have some business to discuss _right now_."

Kimiko moved in closely and affectionately took hold of Rai's arm. Rai was taken back by this.

"Really? What business is that?"

Rai got his answer when Kimiko flipped him over her shoulder into the wall.

"From now on my cubical is a demon free zone, understand?"

Rai removed his face from the wall with a loud pop.

"Well the way I see it either I understand or I doubt I'd survive the second time," he replied, still in a daze.

* * *

"So what is this business that you wanted to discuss?" Clay asked.

The Dragons, Master Fung and Rai were gathered in one of the studies.

"Well you see," Rai said, "I got to thinking…"

"Did it hurt?" Kimiko interjected.

"Not nearly as much as that wall did," Rai replied, "as I was saying, I got to thinking and I've found something that I can contribute to the temple."

Rai then pulled out a scroll. It was red with two jade rods. Keeping it closed was a golden band round the middle. What ever the symbols meant it certainly wasn't any form of Chinese that Kimiko has ever seen before or any Asian language for that matter.

"Uh? What is it?"

"Its the Wen-Chang scroll."

Omi let out a mirthless chuckle.

"The Wen-Chang scroll? You are undoubtedly pushing our arms."

"Uh Omi? What are you talking about?" Kimiko asked, "What's the Wen-Chang scroll and why couldn't that be it?

"The Wen-Chang scroll is said to contain the location of the mythical Wen-Chang library," Omi explained, "And I know that the scroll that Rai is holding could not be the Wen-Chang Scroll because it said to have bee lost 1500 years ago."

There was a moment silence and a thought seemed to cross Omi's mind.

"Rai! It was you that stole the Wen-Chang Scroll!" Omi accused.

"Hey! I got the Scroll first so it's mine fair and square," Rai retorted, "besides if Dashi hadn't turned me into a statue maybe the scroll wouldn't have been lost for so long."

Before a fight broke out, Master Fung decided to interject.

"While we welcome the recovery of such a valuable artefact I do not see how it will be useful," Master Fung admitted, "Especially since, if the records are correct, the seal had been deemed unbreakable."

Rai gave a smug smirk.

"Well as you get to know me, you'll I'm all about breaking seals and breaking records."

Rai held the scroll as if he was about to open it and spoke in an incomprehenisible language.

Open the gate to the wonders inside

A thin blue line ran across the seal. When the seal broke, the scroll opened. Reality appeared to begin unhinging as books flooded in from no where and started filling rapidly appearing book shelves

The closest thing to what they were experiencing was what happened when a Showdown field appeared.

When the transformation was complete, they found themselves in a labyrinth where books and bookshelves seemed to go as far as the eye could see in every direction, including up.

"Welcome to the Wen-Chang library," Rai said in a tour guide voice, "the one stop for all your literary needs."

"Incredible," Omi said in awe, "I have never seen so many books in one place before."

"I'd be amazed if you did," Rai said, "If my sources are correct, this library is the gateway to the collective consciousness of literature and houses every piece of text ever written and in every language it was ever translated to."

Kimiko walked over to a nearby shelf and pulled out a random book. She found that by chance it was a Japanese translation of "the little engine that could". She pulled out the book right beside it and found that it appeared to be written in hieroglyphics and from the pictures was in no way kids friendly

"Well that's all good and well," Kimiko said, "but how are you meant to find anything."

"By asking the librarian."

Almost as if it was summoned a figured fazed out from self. It's whole body was hidden by the red robe it was wearing, Its face was hidden by a red hood and even its hands were hidden under its long selves. More or less it looked like grim reaper if he had decide to be a summer instead of a winter.

"Who is that?" Clay asked.

"That," Rai replied, "is the librarian. The one running the show."

The librarian seemed to face Rai and after a moment it started to speak in a language that the Dragons and Master Fung couldn't understand.

/Greetings Rai, welcome back./

/Greetings to you too/ Rai replied in the same language, /How are things?/

Well until you interrupted the 1500 years of peace and quiet that I have been enjoying, things were going rather well. I had been on the verge of finishing a series of books by an author from the Rowling clan...

"What is the librarian saying?" Master Fung asked.

"Something about us trespassing and Omi having to be offered as a sacrifice," Rai answered ,"You know minor details like that."

The group paled, Omi especially. Meanwhile the librarian continued to talking

/...While I thought the setting was somewhat refreshing, I found the idea of how particular characters were conceived rather mind boggling.../

"Now he's saying something about gutting Clay and turning him into a bed side cabinet."

"Well come on," Clay objected, "that ain't right!"

"Don't worry Clay," Rai said, "He's bluffing."

"How can ya be so sure?"

"The guy doesn't sleep," Rai answered, "so what use would he have for bed."

/I say Rai, are you even listening to what I am saying?/ the librarian asked.

/Not a word, so would you finish already so that you can do your job?/

The librarian huffed.

/Very well since you have no interest in having a discussion on literature and I am bound to serve who ever can use the library and speak in my language, let me know what books you want so that you may leave and I can enjoy my solitude once more./

"Great news," Rai told the rest, "I was able to appease the librarian so now full reign of the library is ours."

"That is most certainly a relief," Master Fung said, "but how does this work."

"Simple," Rai replied, "You get me to tell him what piece of literature you're after and he will get it for you."

"Oh really?" Omi asked in disbelief, "So it would be able to find the "Tome of Tai Po, the famed Water Dragon of the Ming Dynasty?"

Rai quickly translated to the librarian who seemed to blur for a moment before becoming clear again, this time, holding a book. He handed it to Omi. Omi gasped.

"This is the Tome of Tai Po, the famed Water Dragon of the Ming Dynasty."

After this display, Master Fung, Kimiko and Clay decided to give it a try.

"The Ancient Guide to Toe Nail care."

"The April 2004 edition of 'Mew Mew Styling'."

"My 1st grade science report on genetics and evolution."

The librarian delivered all of them with the same speed and effectiveness.

"Awww would ya look at that," Clay said as he fawned over his old report, "I actually believed that while Lamark's theory was greatly flawed, there is still the possibly for events in an individual's life span affecting them on a genetic level."

Everyone just stared at Clay for moment.

"Err," Clay said, becoming slightly nervous, "I also drew a neat picture of a cave man riding a dinosaur."

* * *

"That library was most amazing," Omi said.

"Indeed it was," Master Fung said, "though I have to wonder; if Wuya had such a library at her disposal, why would she send you out to retrieve so many scrolls and books?"

"Well you see, I never exactly told her that I was able to open the library. She let me keep it after her attempts to open it failed. I toyed with it and well as the saying goes, bada bing bada boom."

"Hold on, ya mean ya were able to keep secrets from Wuya?"

"Well I couldn't lie to her if that's wait you mean," Rai explained, "It was sort of a no ask, no tell kind of deal."

Before anything more could be asked Rai went board stiff for a moment as his eyes started to glow, as it did, Dojo started to spasm.

"The Cube of Haniku has revealed it self," Demon and dragon said in unison.

"Which way is it?"

"That way," Rai said, pointing to the West.

Dojo let out a disbelieving huff.

"Oh please, like you would be any good at detecting it. Leave this to a professional Wu detector. The Cube of Haniku is _this_ way."

There was an awkward moment when Dojo realised that he was pointing in exactly the same direction as Rai.

"Lucky guess," He muttered.

"Let's hop to it," Omi said.

Just then, Rai and Dojo went stiff once more.

"The Preying Monster has revealed it self!"

"Which way?"

Dojo and Rai both pointed to the East.

"you have got to be kidding me," Kimiko said in disbelief.

"So we've got to be at two different sides of the map at the same time," Clay said, "how ya reckon we're gonna manage that sort of russel up.

"By remaining calm and thinking clearly," Omi said.

Everyone stood still as they they tried to think of a solution. After a moment of silence Omi started screaming and running back and forth.

"ARRGH! I CAN NOT DECIDE WHICH WAY WE MUST GO!!!"

Clay, Kimiko and Master Fung all face palmed themselves at the display. Meanwhile Rai had made himself comfortable leaning against a statue watching, somewhat amused, the spectacle in front of him.

"Well gee, you really are in a spot of bother," Rai said, "if only there was someone else in the temple that could sense Wu."

Omi, who had apparently been listening, stopped running.

"You are correct Rai," Omi said, "that would most certainly have helped us with this problem."

Omi returned to his running and screaming before stopping again when a thought dawned on him.

"Rai, you are able to sense Shen Gong Wu."

Rai suddenly stood up straight as if he had heard something incredible.

"Really?" Rai asked in mock amazement, "I can actually sense Wu? I had no idea!!"

Kimiko then whacked him in the back of the head.

"Don't get smart," Kimiko scolded.

"Man Kimiko," Rai said while rubbing the back his head, "we have got to get a safe word or something."

He quickly zipped up at the threatening glare Kimiko was giving him.

"So you would be able to help us find one of the Shen Gong Wu?" Master Fung asked.

"Just as well as scale butt over there," Rai answered, "probably even better since I'm of some use in a fight."

"Hey!" Dojo protested, "I'll have you know that I have turned the tide on many of the Dragon's battles."

"What? The ones they've lost?"

At that Dojo got into Rai's face.

"Now look here, I'm the temple dragon around here, I deserve respect."

Rai dramatically bit his teeth together and Dojo ran and hid behind Master Fung. Master Fung let out a small disapproving groan before he spoke again.

"Very well, Rai and Kimiko will retrieve the cube while Clay and Omi will retrieve the Preying Monster."

Omi and Clay nodded and then started to run off.

"Hey Clay," Rai called, "Aren't you forgetting something?"

Clay stopped and turned round. He looked at Rai and Kimiko and realised what he had forgotten.

"Oh right," He said, "Rai, don't do anything inappropriate to Kimiko other wise I'll be forced to something yer something til next sometime."

At that, he ran off again.

Kimiko and Rai just stood for a moment to process the threat.

"Well we better get going before I figure out which one of my something's he's referring to," Rai said as he turned his back to Kimiko, "Hop on."

"Excuse me?"

"You want to get to the Wu don't you? Well the nothing beats the demon express so hop on."

"Not yet Rai," Kimiko said, " I first need to get some Wu and get changed."

"What's wrong with what you're wearing?"

"Hello, we're going to the outside world," Kimiko said, "I don't exactly blend in with this on. Besides I not going to be caught dead looking unfashionable."

"Yeah because fashion has everything to do with fighting," Rai said sarcastically before pretending to pick up a phone, "hello? Hey Kimiko, its Teen magazine; they saw you on the Great wall last week and wanted to do an article on you about how to fire up the cat walk whilst firing up the battle."

"Laugh it up now Rai but it's going to happen," Kimiko replied, "Just you wait."

* * *

"Which one, which one?" Kimiko muttered to herself.

She was in currently in her cubical, wearing only her underclothing while she was trying to decided what to wear, she had narrowed her choices down to two but neither were really screaming "pick me".

"I'd go with the green one."

"You really think...Rai!"

Kimiko suddenly realised that Rai was standing in the cubicle while she was just in her underwear!

"Yep here I am," Rai said, "And before you get all screamy and hurt Rai-y; you peeped on me when I washing my self, remember?"

Kimiko, who had gone semi-catatonic, nodded dumbly.

"Good, now I'm waiting for you at the temple vault so hurry up," Rai said, "oh and I was serious about the green, I think the tone would be a good contrast with your eyes."

At that Rai walked out with out saying another word. When Kimiko's brain started functioning again, she was alone in the cubical. She quickly gave her head a shake.

_Kimiko, you keep telling yourself to avoid Dojo's cooking and now it's making you hallucinate. There is no way Rai would suicidal enough to pull something like that._

Meanwhile Rai was walking down the hall, looking quite pleased with him self.

_Refuge in audacity, oh how I love thee._

* * *

"So ready to hit the road?" Rai asked.

"Yes but are you sure this is safe?" Kimiko asked.

"Well look at it this way," Rai replied, "if its not then we'll both die and you'll get to kick my butt in the after life."

Kimiko froze and looked at Rai nervously

"Just climb on," Rai said slightly testily.

Kimiko reluctantly climbed on to Rai's back. When she was in position, she felt something wrap around her upper thighs and hips, when she looked down she saw that Rai's jacket had morphed to have harnesses. This made it seem like it they were either tandem sky diving or that Kimiko was in a baby carrier.

Rai shrugged under the look Kimiko was giving him.

"I figured me having to hold onto you legs might get awkward."

Rai started to run of before anything more could be said.

* * *

Kimiko knew that Rai was able to run fast but she had no idea what it would be like. She had almost expected it to be like riding a motor bike that was no way describe what riding Rai was like. The scenery just seemed to fly by and yet Kimiko didn't feel a any wind whipping into her face. It was almost like being in a race car but not as restrictive. As the scenery sped by it started to change from mountains to forest to desert.

"Hey I remember this place," Rai said, "Its really changed since the old day but I remember all the traders and what not that I met here, I tell ya, you don't realise how diverse a place is until you've been called "Freak of nature" in 15 different dialects."

Kimiko looked round at the vast desert that they were running through as a chilling thought dawned on her.

"Uh Rai," Kimiko asked, "how can you tell for sure if you're heading in the right direction."

"It's easy," Rai replied, "with this new Wu-sense, all I have to do is follow my nose and it will lead me right to it."

"And how about for when we want to head back to the temple?"

"Well you can't expect me to have all the answers, can you?"

* * *

Rai finally came to a stop at the foot of a cliff.

"Here we are," Rai said," The Cube of Haniku is definitely somewhere up there."

Kimiko pulled out the Falcon's eye and had a look.

"There! I see it."

Kimiko raced forward and started to climb the cliff to the place where she had seen the Cube hidden; about a third of the way up the cliff. After a climb and quite a few not so nice words, Kimiko was back on the ground, proudly hold the Cube. As she looked around sher saw Rai lying on the ground nearby.

Kimiko lightly poked Rai with her foot.

"Come on, Rai, I found it," She told him, "let's head back."

"Sure, just let me rest a bit."

"You can rest when we get back to the temple," Kimiko answered, "If we hang around we may run into Wuya, Jack or whoever decides to come and get this. We need to use this head start."

Rai looked at Kimiko in exhausted dismay.

"I just _ran _the silk road with you on my back, does that mean **nothing**?!"

"Well I just had to climb that cliff while you were waiting down here but you don't hear me complaining." Kimiko replied.

"No you got most of that done while you were climbing," Rai said back, "now as hard as it is to believe I'm not limitless bundle of energy so cool it. I'll take us home when I'm ready."

Kimiko crossed her arms and huffed until an idea came to her.

"Say Rai?"

"Yeah?"

"Have you ever wondered what your own kidney's taste like?"

* * *

"And...here...we...are," Rai managed out as he trudged into the temple with Kimiko on his back.

When he came to a stop Kimiko jumped off.

"Great," She said cheerfully, "I'll just go tell Master Fung that we're back."

"You do that and in the mean while I'll find somewhere suitable to pass out," Rai said before his gaze went downwards, "Oh look, hard stone."

He promptly collapsed.

* * *

Master Fung walked up to Rai, who was still passed out in the courtyard.

"Rai..."

Rai suddenly sat up.

"Damanation woman! How much more must my body give before your sadistic urges are sated?!"

When Rai realised who was actually standing there, things got slightly awkward.

"Just for the record, that didn't come out right."

"Noted," Master Fung said, "I just came here to thank you for you're help today with retrieving the Shen Gong Wu."

"Not a problem," Rai said, "Always glad to help my new allies."

"I am so glad to hear you say that because I have decided for you to help the young Dragons permanently."

"Wait, What?"

"From now on you will be part of the team retrieving Shen Gong Wu."

"You mean I have to go through more of this?!" Rai asked in disbelief.

"Think of it as a good learning experience."

At that, Rai lay back down and went into the foetal position.

"Can I go back to being a statue now?"

* * *

**Here you go, hope you liked it.**

**Now for Mr Makulu's Fact Filler (Ok not to sure about that name but trying it anyway, still open to suggestions**)

**The Silk Road, or Silk Routes, are an extensive interconnected network of trade routes across the Asian continent connecting East, South, and Western Asia with the Mediterranean world, including North Africa and Europe.**

**So-called "Silk Routes" were not only conduits for silk, but for many other products and were also very important paths for cultural and technological transmission by linking traders, merchants, pilgrims, monks, missionaries, soldiers, nomads and urban dwellers from China to the Mediterranean Sea for thousands of years.**

**Wen-Chang is the name of the Chinese Daoist God of writing, books and literature.**

**The Preying Monster and the Cube of Haniku are actual Shen Gong Wu that only appeared in the card game. The Preying Monster turns the user in to a giant praying mantis type creature and the Cube of Haniku is said to create ironic situations.**

**Lastly, Jean-Baptiste Lamarck was a Biologist and a writer of evolutionary theory who predated Charles Darwin.**

**

* * *

****Also, as a bit of fun for the readers (and because I still feel bad about taking this long to update) I will grant a free fic request to the first person to send me a review or a private message with "Freak of nature" translated into 15 different dialects.**

**The rules are simple; the message/review must have "Freak of nature" translated into 15 different languages/dialects as well as say what languages they are in. **

**The winner can request any sort of fic they would like me to write however I must ask that it be a Oneshot, that it be on a show/whatever that I know (Preferably Xiaolin Showdown, Teen Titans or Avatar the Last Airbender but others are up to discussion) and that it not be something involving smut or slash (If you like it, that's fine but I just don't want to write it). Aside from that, anything goes.**

**See you next chapter.**


	16. Bravery

**Authors Note: OK I have a few notices so please bare with me.**

**_(pulls out sheet of paper)_**

**Item 1: As can be seen by the delay in me updating, I haven't had as much time for writing. Now that I've graduated, I need to work full and I have just finished my second week at a new, higher positioned job, so I'm still working on the whole work/life balance thing. That still doesn't change my commitiment to finishing the stories that I start so you will see this completed.**

**Item 2: Allendra, a fellow Xiaolin writer, had asked me back in Febuary to ask all of my readers to help get cartoon network's attention by sending in emails asking for the return of XS. **

**Item 3: Wicca in Training, another Xiaolin writer and reveiwer, has posted a story called "Common Misconceptions" which borrows some concepts from this story (namely Demon Rai and the Spear of Dashi). I would just like to verify that yes, she (I think its a she but not certain) did ask my premission to use my Demon of Wind concept and I did give it. **

**Also since she went through the trouble to ask my premission, I would like to ask that any of my readers that are interested to have a look out for it. It is still going to be her own story and from what I've seen in the first the chapter, it could potentially be a really good story so any surport (or reviews) that you readers would be willing give I think would be really good.**

**Item 4: Bob from "Pains of a Dragon" is awsome and even though I cause concussions and broken bones I still hit like a girl.**

**_(Pauses, then throws away the piece of paper and pulls out a crowbar)_**

**Ok since there is nothing more to say, enjoy the chapter while I go over to my "Pains of a Dragon" story for some serious character _Redesigning._**

Rai held the sword of the storm in both hands. He closed his eyes as he allowed his muscles to relax and prepare. Then he prepared to practise his formations. He spun into action, practising his forms. His movements were fluid as he swung, flipped, stabbed and sliced at invisible opponents.

"Hey Rai!" Kimiko called, "What form is that?"

Rai turned to see the Dragons watching him from a safe distance.

"Obviously it is the famed 'Demon Monkey' that Rai was most famous for," Omi said in his know it all voice.

"'Demon Monkey'? Is that what they called it?" Rai asked as he returned to practising.

"Of course," Omi replied, "what do you call it?"

"Uh, 'fighting to stay alive'"

Clay whistled as he watched Rai practise.

"I reckon yer not too bad wit dat der blade."

"Thanks," Rai replied, "the sword of the storm had been built in attempts to combat me so it was modelled after my Nexus Blade."

"Nexus Blade?"

"My weapon of choice back in the old days," Rai explained, "lost it when I got turned to stone."

"How did you get beaten anyway?" Kimiko asked, "The records we've found about you never covered it."

"Obviously it was a great and noble battle between good and evil," Omi said proudly.

"Great and noble? They cornered me while I was recovering in a cave."

"Well then they used cunning and skill to locate the cave."

"A two-bit dragon ratted me out."

"Uh...They were not dumb enough to mess up an easy capture."

"Ok, I'll give you that one."

There was a moment of silence before Kimiko decided to ask the next question that came to her.

"Alright so why are you training without Master Fung asking you to?"

"Well since I'm now going to be helping you guys find Wu, I'd just thought I'd make sure that I'm in tip top shape," Rai explained, "I mean you guys already have one chubby Earth Dragon, you don't need a chubby Wind Demon as well."

"Hey!" Clay said, "Who're ya calling a chubby Earth Dragon?!"

"The guy with the weird accent and the stupid hat."

At that Clay went red faced and blew steam out of his nose.

"Alright," Clay said as he put on the Fist of Tebigong, "now yer asking for it."

Rai just smirked as he prepared the sword of the storm.

"Bring it."

The two fighters were about to charge at each other when an ominous figure towered over them.

"Rai," Master Fung said in a stern and inquiring voice, "might I ask why you are antagonizing your team mate?"

"Well, nothing like a good fight to help get you into shape," Rai quickly covered.

"If you are so eager to spar I would be willing to be your sparring partner," Master Fung offered.

Rai put the Sword of the Storm away.

"No offence but I prefer to keep confronting Master's to a minimum."

"Even when ice cream is involved?"

That got Rai's attention.

"What kind?"

Master Fung held up a bowl of chocolate ice cream.

"If you can get this bowl from me, it's yours."

Rai casually walked up to Master Fung.

"So are there any rules?"

"Just one; there are no..."

Before Master Fung finish, Rai hit the bottom of the hand that was holding the bowl, causing it to fly upwards. Rai leapt after it only to have his ankle grabbed by Master Fung. Next thing Rai knew he was skidding across the ground. He lifted his head from the ground in time for him to see the bowl land back in Master Fung's hand.

"That trick was old even when I was your age," Master Fung said, "you'll have to be a bit more original."

Rai growled slightly and leapt back in to action again.

And again.

And again.

And again.

And each time Master Fung dodged and repelled him with ease. After the third or forth try Rai realised that this would work. Suddenly with a new idea, Rai charged straight on at Master Fung. In the last second flipped over Master Fung, letting noose made out of the fabric of his robe. When Rai landed he then pulled on the rope, pulling the bowl out of Master Fungs hand and sending it flying towards Rai.

As the bowl went flying towards Rai. Master Fung pulled a rock out from his robe and threw it. It head the bowl dead on, shattering it and sending ice cream everywhere.

"What gives?!" Rai demanded.

"Your goal had been to win," Master Fung said, "mine had simply been not to lose. Take from this lesson what you can."

Rai gave a shrug as merged the rope back with his robe.

"Well in that case, I think I'll take this."

Rai pulled out a tub of chocolate ice cream. Master Fung almost went bug eyed before checking his robe where he had stored the tub of ice cream and finding it was empty.

"Swiped it from you while you did what felt like 'snake unravelling rope'," Rai explained, "now I believe that in this kind of situation it is customary to say this; WOOT!!!"

Rai then ran off, holding the ice cream triumphantly over his head. Master Fung just stood there, a slight twitch in his eye.

Dojo jumped onto Master Fung.

"Well I guess you can't win 'em all"

* * *

"So we're looking for the Shadow Slicer?" Omi asked, "I would most enjoy possessing such a Wu."

"Yeah 'so you can make a copy of yourself to confuse you enemies and admire it'," Kimiko said, "we know. Lets just find the thing."

The Dragons looked round, currently they were at one of the largest zoos in this part of the world with no real idea of where to start and both of their Wu detectors hadn't decided to bring their A-game to this particular hunt.

"Well partners I guess its da old split up and look for Wu routine," Clay said.

"Indeed," Omi said, trying to take control of the situation, "Clay and I shall go this way, meanwhile Rai and Kimiko will go that way."

Both Clay and Kimiko gave quick nod to let Omi know they had heard him. He and Clay then headed off in the designated direction.

"Ok Rai," Kimiko said, "time to get to work."

She turned to Rai who was leaning against a tree, breathing into a paper bag.

"Come on Rai, calm down," Kimiko ordered, "it wasn't that bad."

Rai, after a bit of effort was able to remove the bag from his mouth.

"I just spent two hours over a thousand feet in the air at the mercy of a lizard that still holds on to the belief that I'm trying to eat it! It was that bad and I am never going on that thing again!"

"You mean **after** the next time right?" Kimiko asked.

"Huh?"

"Well we still need to make the return trip back to temple."

Realisation soon dawned on Rai, causing him to return to breathing into the bag, this time at twice the speed.

Kimiko let out a frustrated groan before walking up to Rai and clapping the paper bag with both hands, causing it to pop in Rai's faces.

"Argh!"

"Feel better?" Kimiko asked.

Rai paused for a moment before answering.

"yeah I do actually."

"Good so how bout we actually try to find that Wu now?"

"Alright, Rai is in the game and ready for action,' Rai said, "what are we looking for again?"

"The shadow slicer," Kimiko offered with strained patience.

"Oh right, OK, just give me a moment to fire up the demon mojo....yeah, I got nothing."

"What?!"

"Yeah, apparently hyperventilating for two hours straight causes my Wu sensing abilities to malfunction. Who knew?"

He then sweet dropped when he saw Kimiko's fist clench slightly.

"Wait I think I sense something," Rai said quickly, "Ok so I'm pretty sure the Wu is this way; so either the tiger's den or monkey island."

"Tiger's Den," Kimiko said quickly.

"Are you sure? It could just as likely be at the..."

"Tigers Den Rai!"

"Tiger's Den it is," Rai said with a sigh

Nearby and unseen, an old lady was watching them.

"Perfect," She mutter with a satisfied smile.

* * *

"Ok, Kimiko," Rai said, "We've looked and I'm not seeing the shadow slicer, maybe if we try monkey island..."

"No monkeys!" Kimiko snapped.

Rai just looked at Kimiko slightly perplexed.

"Uh Kimi," Rai asked as diplomatically as he could manage, "Is this one of those "21st century girl" things."

"No this is one of those "drop it or die" things," Kimiko warned.

Rai rolled his eyes at but decided not to push the matter.

A loud scream suddenly pierced the air. Rai and Kimiko ran to the Tiger enclosure and saw that a small girl had fallen in. Nearby was a woman frantically calling for help. One of bystanders ran off, probably to get help while another one was trying to calm the woman down.

"We will get her out but we must be quiet otherwise we may alert the..."

A roar filled the air. Out from a from the hole that probably led to its den came the tiger. It prowled with a primal confidence and that only a pure predator would have been capable of. It seemed to know, as if by pure instinct, that there was a trespasser in its domain. It headed straight towards where the little girl was clamouring at the walls in attempts to get out of the enclosure. At about twenty feet away the tiger stopped and let out a low growl, alerting the little girl to its presence. The little girl froze and slowly turned her head. She let out a frightened gasp and pinned her back against the side of the enclosure. The tiger started moving again, slowly closing the distance between them. The girl let out a frightened whimper as soon the tiger was with in ten feet. Not knowing what else to do, the girl crouched into a ball and tried to cover her vitals. She closed her eyes and tears streamed down her face.

When she heard a soft thud, she opened her eyes and saw figure standing between her and the tiger.

* * *

There Rai stood, crouching. To his back was a girl that until 60 seconds ago he hadn't even known about her existence and to his front stood about 400 pounds of killer kitty cat.

Rai had removed his glasses mid jump when he had leapt into the enclosure so now his bare eyes stared straight into the tiger's with a steely determination.

Despite the determined look Rai had, inside his head he was screaming.

_RAI YOU LUNATIC! WHAT IS WRONG WITH YOU?! WHY WOULD YOU WILLING JUMP INTO THE FACE OF ONE OF NATURES KILLING MACHINES?_

Rai then felt the little girl press herself against Rai's back.

"I'm scared," She whispered.

_That's why_

"It's going to be ok," Rai assured her, never taking his eyes of the tiger, "stay behind me and I won't let you get hurt."

_DAMN IT RAI! NOW YOU'VE MADE A PROMISE THAT YOU MAY HAVE TO GET YOUR SELF MAIMED TO KEEP!_

_Look, the shouting isn't helping matters so would you please zip it so I can focus on the tiger._

_FINE! JUST DON'T COME CRYING TO ME WHEN ITS BUSY DEVOURING YOUR LIVER!_

With that out of the way, Rai gave his full focus to the tiger. Neither moved in this stand off of beasts. The tiger started to lifted it's paw, as if it was about to take another step forward. In reply Rai lifted his right hand and made it mimic a claw.

"Don't even think it, stripy."

The tiger paused. It's head tilted slightly. A moment passed as the two just stared before something passed between them; understanding. With what appeared to be the slightest bow of the head, the tiger turned and walked off. Rai let out a sigh of relief. He turned his head to look at the little girl.

"You ok?"

The little girl nodded her head.

"Ok that's good, now you're going to have to hold on so that I can get us out of here."

At that the girl rapped her arms around Rai's neck. Rai then used one hand to secure the girl's leg round his waist. Rai toook in a deep breath and took a few steps away from the enclosure wall. He then sprinted and wind-jumped into the air. He grabbed the safety rail and climbed out. Once safely out Rai crouched down again so that the girl could climb off.

"Stacy!"

A woman ran in and pulled the little girl into a hug.

"I was so scared," the woman said.

"I'm alright, mommy " Stacy assured her mother, "the nice boy saved me."

The mother took the moment to look Rai in the eye. Rai tensed when he realised that he hadn't put his glasses back on. He tried to back away when the mother expectantly pull Rai into a hug.

"Thank you, thank you, thank you..." she constantly repeated.

This exchanged last for a while. When the mother let go, Rai ran for it before someone could stop him. Kimiko was about to go after him when she heard someone calling her.

"Hey Kimiko!"

Kimiko turned and saw Clay and Omi walked up, covered head to toe in filth.

"What happened to you?" Kimiko asked.

"Well ya see, we found the Wu but we had a run in with Jack and some of his friends," Clay explained.

"Oh," Kimiko said nervously, "so where was the Wu?"

"On monkey island," Omi explained, "why do you ask?"

* * *

The tiger walked back into the den. Inside was the old lady, stroking the belly of the _actual _zoo tiger. Meanwhile, the Tiger from the confrontation morphed back into its kitten form.

"Nicely done Hu," the old woman praised.

Hu jumped in the old lady's lap and started purring.

"You're right," the old lady said, "Rai has most certainly proved himself as brave. That means two tests down and two to go."

* * *

"Rai!" Kimko called, "the Wu's been found, its time to go home."

She looked round for Rai until she saw him sitting on a bench, rubbing his arm thoughtfully.

Kimiko walked up to Rai tentatively. She opened her mouth to speak but Rai beat her to it.

"She hugged me," Rai said, disbelief evident in his voice, "that woman looked me right in the eye, saw me for what I was and still hugged me."

"Well you had just saved her child, of course she would be grateful," Kimiko said, "people don't really believe in demons so...

Rai turned and looked at Kimiko; cutting off what she was saying.

"Grateful? You mean people hug complete strangers out gratitude nowadays?"

Kimiko stopped and stared.

"Of course they would if the stranger had done something like saving their kid."

Rai suddenly started closing the gap between them.

"So theoretically, if someone had done something for me that I am extremely grateful for, it would be all right for me to hug them?"

Kimiko nodded briefly, not sure where Rai was going with this. She soon got her answer when Rai pulled her into a hug. She tensed at first but then found herself gradually relaxing, allowing her self for a moment to enjoy the sensation of being held like this by Rai. After a short while, Rai slowly and comfortably pulled away. He took a moment to gaze into Kimiko's eyes.

"Thank you," He said softly, his voice filled with sincerity.

At that he start to walk off.

"Wait!" Kimiko called, finally out of a daze, "what are you thanking me for."

Rai turned his head back and gave a small smirk as he put on a pair of sun glasses.

"I'll leave it for you to figure out," he said, "you only said I had to be grateful, you never said I had to be specific."

–

* * *


	17. Quests

**Authors note: here is the new chapter, hope you like it. Sorry about the delay again but as with many writers, I'm still dealing with the work life balance. **

**But anyway, enjoy and let me know what you think.**

"And we're back," Dojo said, "Thank you for flying Air Dojo."

As the warriors climbed off of Dojo, Master Fung came running.

"Young monks! The vault has been raided!"

"What!" the Wudai Warriors exclaimed.

"Wuya attacked the temple shortly after you left with Cyclops."

"You mean that hag has our Wu," Kimiko groaned.

"No and that is the concern," Master Fung explained, "when she managed to open the vault, it was already empty."

"Whoa, hold up," Clay said, "you mean someone else got there first and took ALL the Wu in the vault."

Master Fung nodded.

"This is most bad," Omi said.

Just then a portal opened and out stepped Rai, holding the Golden Tiger Claws.

"Hey guys, sorry I'm late getting back," Rai said, "I decided to sight see a bit and then I got hungry and stopped at this vendor and this..."

He then trailed off when he saw the glum expressions that everyone had.

"Uh guys? What did I miss?"

"All the Wu that were left in the vault have been taken by some unknown evil," Omi said, "we have been Jacked."

"Jacked?" Rai asked, "Never heard that one before...wait you mean you mean that we leave the Wu that we won't use in the vault when we go out Wu hunting?"

"Well yeah," Kimiko said, "Do you expect us to lug all the Wu with us where ever we go?"

Rai then let out a frustrated huff.

"Well that's just great," He muttered.

He then took off his jacket and started shaking it. As he did, Wu started falling out until there was a big pile. It was all the Wu that the Wudai Warriors had chosen to leave behind.

"You mean that I've been carrying round all these Wu around for no reason?" Rai demanded, "would it kill you guys to give a bit of a heads up on these things? I do have better things to do with my than break it carry useless equipment."

Rai then realised that everyone staring at him.

"What?"

He got answer when Kimiko wrapped her arms around his neck.

"Rai you genius," Kimiko said.

Rai blushed lightly as he rubbed the back of his head.

"Well I do have my moments."

* * *

"I can not believe this!" Wuya exclaimed, "We go through all that and the Temple can not even keep track of their wu long enough for US TO STEAL IT!!"

"Yeah," Jack agreed, "you pretty much blew it."

He then let out a scream when Wuya threw a work bench at him.

"Watch it!" He said in a high pitched voice, "I just got the lair the way I like it."

"When I find out who got to the vault, I'm going to..."

"I might be able to shed some light on that."

Both Wuya and Jack turned to the source of the new voice and saw Hannibal Bean and the Ying-ying bird.

"You," Wuya said, "you're the one who hit the temple first."

Before a fight could break out, the Ying-ying bird played the image of Rai dropping all of the Wu out of his jacket. Wuya's fist clenched.

"That two timing, backstabbing demon," Wuya fumed, "after all I did for him."

"So we know the temple still has their Wu," Jack said, "Why don't we just sneak in when the Xiaolin losers are asleep and take them."

"You mean like you tried three weeks ago?" Hannibal asked.

* * *

_Jack, was sneaking through the temple at the dead of night. He had managed to by pass the alarms through sheer genius and was now making a bee line to the vault. Once he was in he we would unlock the vault and then use his jack-bots as a diversion so that he could make a tactical retreat._

Jack, this plan is brilliant.

_Jack opened the door that lead to the vault and as he did, he came face to face with Rai, who was idly spinning his knife between his fingers._

"_Hey there Jacky," Rai said cheerfully, "still undead?"_

* * *

"Alight so that didn't go so well," Jack said.

"Face it," Hannibal said, "With Rai on the Xiaolin side, the good guys now have a player who knows our moves and as much as I hate to say it, we haven't exactly had a chance to learn new ones locked up for the last 1500 years."

"Rai doesn't know _my_ moves," Jack said proudly.

"Technically true," Wuya agreed, "but you're too pathetic for it to be any use to us."

"Hey!"

"So what you're saying is that we should just give up?" Wuya asked, completely ignoring Jack's protest.

"Not at all," Hannibal said, "I'm saying that instead of working separately and getting our rear ends constantly handed to us, we should work together on one big plan, and I just happen to have a big plan."

"How big?" Wuya asked.

"Think Mala Mala Jong, only bigger."

"No way am I helping you guys recreate Mala Mala Jong," Jack said defiantly, "Last time we dealt with him, I was turned into a human basketball."

"He was only using Mala Mala Jong as an example of how big the plan was," Wuya said while rubbing the bridge of her nose.

"Oh? So then what would you need for this plan?" Jack asked.

"And more importantly, why would we help you with this plan?" Wuya asked.

"Well for starters, it would get rid of those Xiaolin thorns in our sides," Hannibal said.

"Keep talking," Wuya ordered.

"Leave the world for ours to conquer," Hannibal continued, "and if we do it right, get rid of Chase Young as well."

"Sign me up!" Jack exclaimed.

Wuya pursed her lips yet still looked thoughtful.

"Alright," She finally conceded, "I'll listen to your plan but that doesn't mean that I'm going to help you."

* * *

Night time had arrived at the temple. Kimiko stepped outside and went looking for Rai. It was a clear night so she had a pretty good idea where he would be. True to form, she found him lying on roof of the vault, looking up at the stars.

With help of a Wu she had packed earlier. She came to the roof and sat down beside Rai. Kimiko was raised that a key part of a good conversation is a strong opening.

"Hey Rai."

"Hey," Rai replied.

There was another moment of silence while Kimiko worked to find another topic to foolow up that great opener.

"its kinda cool to night."

"Is it?"

"Yeah, can't you feel it?"

"No," Rai replied, "It always feels the same to me."

Rai turned his head slightly to see the look of curiosity on Kimiko's face. Rai sighed, realising that an explanation.

"My body doesn't feel subtle changes in temperature, I can feel scolding hot and freezing cold, anything in between is just dull nothingness."

"Has it always been like that?" Kimiko asked.

"For as long as I've been a demon."

"So is it always 'dull nothingness' ?"

Instead answering, Rai took hold of Kimiko's hand and placed it against his cheek. To Kimiko it felt like it had when she had touched him as a statue.

Rai had an expression on his face as if he was reliving a cherished memory.

"Your hand feels warm," he said when he let go of her hand.

Kimiko pulled her hand away slowly and looked at it.

She sometimes forgot that Rai wasn't human.

"Do you ever miss it?" She asked quietly.

"Miss what?"

"Do you ever miss being human?"

There was a moment until Rai burst out laughing.

"Do I miss it? Rai asked between laughs, "do I miss being some snot nosed human brat with nothing to look forward to but more of the same old same old."

Instead of giving Kimiko a chance to answer, Rai jumped of the roof and start to walk away.

When he was certain he was out of earshot, he stopped laughing immediately and leaned against a wall with a sigh.

"Do I miss it? Everyday of my life."

–

"For today's training you must pour tea," Master Fung explained, "It takes compete focus to be able to pour tea from that teapot."

"_Oooooorrr_ you can just buy a smaller teapot," Rai offered.

"Rai..."

"Ok, ok," Rai said, "but after two months of your weird and not-so-wonderful torture you call training, you'll excuse me for being a little cranky."

"Rai, I don't not like you referring to my methods in such a manor."

Rai paused as he took the time to remember the things he had gone through the last 2 months.

* * *

_Rai! Lift your arms higher._

_Rai! Lower your self closer to the flame._

_Rai! Keep your balance._

_Rai! Control your emotions._

_Rai! Hold a steady pace when carrying the rocks._

_Rai! You put your right hand in and **then** you shake it all about._

* * *

Rai shook his head for a moment.

"You know Master Fung, I read that in America, they've outlawed cruel and unusual punishment."

"How nice that you find the time to research American history," Master Fung replied, "now pour the tea."

Rai silent admitted defeat as he lifted the gigantic teapot. He widened his stance as he tried to keep his balance.

He started to pour the tea into the cups that were provided. It was going reasonably well until...

"LEG CRAMP!!" Rai exclaimed.

The teapot went flying into the air. Master Fung saw it rise and closed his eyes as he prepared for yet another giant teapot to be shattered. The when the sound of porcelain cracking didn't fill the air, Master Fung cautiously opened one eye.

The teapot was floating in mid-air, being held up by a small tornado under Rai's control.

While maintaining control, Rai made the tornado move the teapot back to the table. Slowly exhaling, Rai gradually diminished the tornado and gently lowered the teapot onto the table.

Rai turned to Master Fung.

"Just give me a moment to catch my breath then I'll try again."

"That won't be necessary," Master Fung said, "for you have already achieved its purpose."

"Huh?"

"What you have just done could only be achieved by someone in control of their element," Master Fung explained.

"You mean I've graduated?"

"you've graduated from this faze of your training," Master Fung said, "there is still a lot that you can learn..."

"Whoo-hoo!" Rai said, not longer paying attention, "I'm free!"

Rai then ran off.

There was a moment of silence before one of the legs of the table holding up the teapot gave way. The result was a shattered teapot and tea everywhere.

Master Fung saw the mess and the fact that there was no-one around to clean it except him.

All he could do was groan as he massaged the bridge of his nose.

* * *

"You are to begin a new quest," Master Fung said, "follow this map to the treasure of the blind swordsman."

"Looks more like half a map to me," Clay said.

"The rest of the map will reveal it self along the way," Master Fung explained, "as will your Wudai weapons."

Master Fung was then interrupted by an approving whistle. Every one turned to where Rai was leaning against the wall.

"So the temple is starting to bring out the heavy artillery?" Rai asked, "I approve."

"You know about the Wudai weapons?" Kimiko asked.

"Lets see; said to be unique for each individual, said to choose the warrior rather than the warrior choose it, said to help a Wudai Warriar take mastering their element to a whole new level," Rai listed, "Yeah I might have heard about them in passing."

Omi meanwhile had gone star eyed.

"I've always wanted my own wudai weapon," Omi said.

His eyes started to glaze over as he started to daydream about his future Wudai Weapon. After some effort, Master Fung was able to draw Omi back to the present.

"Upon completing your journey, you will learn how to use your Wudai weapons."

"Okay then lets get packing," Rai said, "you guys get Wu and clothing, I'll start getting food."

"Uh Rai," Master Fung said, "This is a Wudai quest."

"You've said that."

"That the Wudai Warriors must take..."

"Yeah you kinda get that from the name..."

"With out outside help..."

"Still not seeing where you're going with this..."

"With out you," Master Fung said finally.

At that an awkward silence filled the room.

"Oh right," Rai said finally, "I guess I should have seen that coming."

"Come on Master Fung," Kimiko protested, "Rai is part of the team!"

"Hold up fire girl," Rai said raising his hand, "I appreciate the thought but this is Wudai business and needs to be done by Wudai rules."

"But..."

"I'll be fine!" Rai said firmly, "now its time to get ready."

* * *

Rai watched as the Wudai warriors rode off on to their quest. He kept a brave face.

"Rai," Master Fung called, "there is business that we must discuss."

Rai gave one last look towards where the Warriors were heading before going to find Fung.

"Yes Master Fung."

"I have decided that after the Wudai Warriors return from their quest, it will be time for them to go training with Master Monk Guan."

"Oh, Okay then," Rai said, "so what do you expect me to do while I'm waiting round for them to get back.?"

"I expect you to be ready to leave for Guan's temple in an hour."

Rai did a double take.

"Wait what?"

"While the Wudai Warriors are on their quest, you will have one on one training with Master Monk Guan," Master Fung explained, "when the Warriors return from their quest, I will inform them of the change in teacher and then they will join you."

"Wait, this was your plan all along?"

Master Fung nodded.

"Why didn't you tell us this before?"

"I thought it might be best for the warriors to focus on their quest," Master Fung explained, "you might not have noticed but Omi does from time to time have an issue with jealously, finding out you were going to receive individual training with Master Monk Guan might irk him slightly."

"Yeah I could see how that might...." Rai broke of when realisation came to him, "wait, were you being sarcastic just then?"

"Hm? Of course not," Master Fung replied, "I am a master and as such above such forms of wit."

"Yeah I guess you would be...Wait! Were you being sarcastic there as well?"

"I expect you to leave in one hour, you'll be taking the rest of the temples Wu with you so you had better get packing."

* * *

Rai finally arrived at Master Monk Guan's temple. Once Rai stepped out of the Silver Manta Ray, he took a moment to admire the scenery.

_Nice digs, this guy's done well for himself. I wonder if he's any relation to the Guan I knew in the old days._

"Welcome Rai," A voice said.

Rai turned and his jaw dropped slightly. It wasn't a descendant of the Guan that he had known, it **was **the Guan that he had known.

"Guan! Its you!" Rai exclaimed, "I don't believe it...you're **Bald**!"

There was a moment of awkward silence.

"Alive," Rai corrected himself, "what I meant to say was 'alive'."

"Yes, that would certainly have been a better response," Guan agreed.

There was another moment of awkwardness.

"So....are we going start trying to kill each another now or can I first unpack?"

"I have no intention of killing you," Guan said.

"Uh I said 'trying'," Rai replied.

Ignoring Rai's last comment, Guan continued.

"Master Fung contacted me a while ago and explained to me how you are no longer bound to Wuya and how you seek to move forward."

Guan stepped forward and extended his hand.

"The chapter in which we must be enemies is over," Guan continued, "perhaps in this chapter we can be friends."

Rai looked at the hand and then at Guan. Finally a smile appeared on Rai's face as he shook it.

"So if we're friends, can I joke about your lack of hair?" Rai asked.

"I know ways to remove a person's skin by means of chi alone."

"Never mind then."

"Very good," Guan said, "no I was prepared a modest meal. After that we can begin training or we can start first thing tomorrow. Which would you prefer?"

"Does starting tomorrow involve you coming into my room with a big gong?"

"...maybe."

"In that case, give me an hour to eat and have a nap then I'll be good to go."


	18. Training

**Author Note**: **I have no excuses for taking so long to update this story so I'm not going to give one. I'm sorry this happened but now I'm back and I'm updating again. I'm a little rusty so please bear with me.**

**That said I would just like to say thank again you to all the people who took the time to review my work. You guys are great and help make this a very worthwhile experience for me.**

**Also I would like to mention that I have had another first. I've received my first review where I was threatened with a slow and painful demise if I didn't finish this story. I'm sure every author dreams of the day ^^**

**Well enough of me. On with the story. **

"OK I'm ready to go," Rai made a few punching movements to prove his point, "so where do we start?"

He looked and saw that Guan was holding out a folded up uniform.

"If you wouldn't mind obliging me," Guan said, "I have a quite a few not so pleasant memories of battling you dressed as you are now and I fear that in the heat of training I may forget that we are now allies."

Rai looked at the training uniform. Rai could have easily made his Heylin Robes change into something that didn't remind Guan of the bad ol' days but Rai could tell that this was more then just a matter of of changing clothes. This was a matter of two former enemies building a bridge of trust.

"Alright," Rai took the robe, "just let give me a moment to change."

Rai changed out of his old robes and in to the ones Guan had given to him. After years of wearing robes that moulded it self to Rai's size, the new uniform felt slightly strange but it wasn't a bad fit. When he returned he saw Guan holding two fighting staffs. He then threw one to Rai.

"Master Fung has informed me that you have been able to gain focus with your powers, that is is good because it means we are able to focus on physical training." Guan twirled his staff experimentally. "In the form of combat."

"So what, we're just gonna go at each other until someone calls for a break?"

Guan raised an eyebrow. "You object?" He then raised his staff to block an incoming high strike from Rai."

"No," Rai admitted with a smirk, "just wanted to be clear on the rules."

Rai then went in for a low strike, which Guan easily blocked.

"You always were eager for a fight," Guan commented before coming in with a strike to the side.

Rai blocked it "This coming from the guy whose idea of diplomacy was 'make bad guy fall down go boom'."

Soon the two got into a steady rhythm of fighting and bantering.

"I was young," Guan admitted, "And, if memory serves me well, pretty good at the 'go boom' part."

"Yeah well, when you fought me the only guy that fell down was you. I still bet I can take you."

At that Rai decided to up the anti a bit and went in with the intent to finish the fight . He wasn't sure what happened next but the end result was him dangling upside down from a tree. Guan walked up to the dangling Rai, holding both of the staffs again.

"You might have gotten the best of me in the past," Guan said with a faint smirk, "but that is quite literally ancient history and not all of us have spent the last 1500 years as a statue."

"Noted," Rai said dryly, "now would you help me get done."

Guan gave the based of the tree a hard tap. This caused the tree to shake just enough to make Rai go crashing to the ground.

"Pupil," Guan asked the crumpled pile formerly known as Rai, "do you still have basic motor functions.

An outstretched arm and a thumbs up came from out of the pile.

"Good," Guan said as he skilfully balanced a staff on the out stretched hand, "now you have 10 seconds to return to your feet before I start attacking again."

* * *

Rai had learned his lesson and now he and Guan had fallen into an easy rhythm of back and forth. Soon they were able to keep up a conversation while they sparred.

"I really enjoying this but I've got to ask," Rai said. "What am I learning from this."

"What ever you deem necessary to learn," Guan replied. "You opponent on the battle field often your greatest teacher and there no telling what lessons you may learn."

"Really? So what did you learn from fighting me?"

"That power is no match for skill."

"Huh?"

"Dashi in his life time created many Shen Gong Wu to combat evil. Yet out of all the enemies that we faced, you stood out."

"Because I was good looking?" Rai asked.

"Because we were unable to combat what made you great; the Sword of the Storm and the Crest of the Condor could match and exceed your ability to manipulate the wind but not your cunning on how to use it. The Fancy Feet could beat your speed but not your cool headedness in battle. The Mantis Flip coin could match your agility but not you talent for using your environment to your advantage."

"So you were overwhelmed by my sheer awsomeness, what's your point?"

Guan locked his staff with Rai's and pushed them upwards forcing the two to be face to face.

"The point is that it wasn't your power as demon that made you unbeatable," Guan explained, "it was your skill as a warrior."

Guan then used one of his feet to leg sweep Rai. Rai then hit the ground with a thud.

"You also taught me that in a fight it's only cheating if the Ref catches you."

Guan offered a hand, Rai smiled as he took it to get back up.

"Lets take a break," Guan said.

A monk came with a pitcher of water and two glasses. Guan filled both glasses and passed one to Rai. Both took the time to drink before Rai decided to speak.

"Brings back memories from the old days doesn't it?"

Guan's eyes twinkled.

"it certainly does, though as I recall I wasn't holding back last time."

"Yeah, if Chase hadn't been there to watch your back, there's no way you'd have survived."

Rai instantly regretted saying it when he saw how quickly Guan's mood sobered.

"Back then I probably wouldn't have."

Rai took a deep breath as he prepared to ask a question that had been plaguing him for some time now.

"Alright, what happened with Chase? Back in the day you were a pair of inseparable do-gooders on the fast track to become Xiaolin Dragons. Now I wake up to find that Chase is some demonic over lord with a kitty legion. What happened?"

"Hannibal Roy Bean happened."

"What?"

"For as long as I knew him, Chase always pushed him self to be the best. His ambition and pride had always been a fault of his but we had ignored the warning signs because of his strong sense of honour and belief in right & wrong."

"And it was kinda hard to find the time to worry about character flaws when you're stuck fighting a conquer happy Heylin Witch," Rai concluded.

Guan nodded slightly. "The night after Wuya was finally defeated, Chase was approached by Hannibal, offering him the Lao Mang Lone soup. Finally, Chases ambition got the better of him. Shortly after crossing over to the Heylin side, he betray Hannibal and imprisoned him in the Yin Yang world."

"Wow and I thought modern soap opera's were bad," Rai poured him self more water. "So is that why you became an Immortal?"

"As long as Chase remains on this plain of existence so must I; it is the way it must be for balance to be maintained."

"Balance?"

"Of course, for the world to exist, there must be a balance. The darkness must be equal to the light, the winter must be equal to the summer. The good must be equal to the evil. The universe has ordained that for every force there must be an equal an equal force pushing in the opposite direction."

"Confucius?" Rai asked.

"Isaac Newton. I've been trying to branch out."

"So is that why the Xiaolin side favour entrapment over destroying their enemies? For fear of some cosmic backlash if the balance is disrupted."

"That is part of the reason," Guan agreed, "the other part being that some of the Heylin side are capable of redemption if given the chance."

"So what has me changing sides done to the cosmic balance. Shouldn't we be seeing some backlash?"

"Only if you believe fate had intended for you to rejoin the Heylin side." Guan put down his glass. "I on the other hand believe that you were released now of all times because you are intended to balance out the evil of Hannibal being brought back into this world."

At that thought, a monk walked in carrying a box. He handed the box to Guan before leaving. "Now that we I are on the same side, I believe it is only fair to return something that belongs to you." Guan opened the box to revel a sword.

"My Nexus Blade!" Rai exclaimed, "you actually kept it all these years."

"Well when you were defeated, we felt it would be safer with us where it couldn't be used for evil."

Rai careful picked up the blade. It felt so good to be holding his old sword again. "Just wait til the guys see me wielding this baby again." Rai gave the blade one swing before it suddenly turned to dust.

Guan rubbed the back of his neck nervously. "It did spend the last 1500 years in a cleansing chamber." He noticed Rai standing there in shock. "Are you alright?"

"I...I just need to be alone right now."

* * *

It was late and the temple was silent. The only one that was still awake was a wind demon staring up at the night sky, as always, searching for his guardian star.

"I didn't take you for such an avid star gazer."

Rai jumped into an attack stance. Out of the shadows came Chase Young.

"Calm yourself," Chase said "I mean you no harm on this night, you have my word,"

"What do you want then?" Rai asked.

"Simply to offer a warning, from one demon to another."

Rai dropped the attack stance but still remained alert.

"Ok, I play along what do you have to warn me about."

"There is an eclipse coming, a _Heylin_ eclipse."

"So is this like a normal eclipse only 'eviller'?" Rai asked.

"During the eclipse there will be a vacuum of power within the Heylin side," Chase explained.

"So something big and bad could come by and use the unclaimed power to do some damage."

Chase gave a single nod, "I have seen visions that the eclipse will be used by some great evil to regain power. If this is to happen it could spell the destruction of the world."

"Anything more specific?"

"I see a variety outcomes, all depending on how you and Xiaolin warriors face the challenges that lie ahead."

"Right, and where do you fit into this?" Rai asked, "hero or horror?"

"During the eclipse I will...not be helping either side."

Rai raised an eyebrow, "that's pretty convenient."

Chase glowered, "I didn't have to give you this warning, if you can't show gratitude, at least show silence."

"You're right, you didn't have to give this warning," Rai agreed, "so why are you?"

"As shocking as this may sound, I don't want to see the world destroyed," Chase answered, "at least not unless I'm the one responsible."

"Yeah I can't argue with that but why are you telling **me** this? Why not Omi or the others?"

"I expect you to tell your friends about our meeting," Chase stepped back and started to fade into the shadows, "and it was more important to tell you because I foresee that a choice you make will decide the outcome."

* * *

**Authors note: I hope you enjoyed it. Don't worry we'll hear from the Dragons again soon.  
**

**Now for a bit of discussion, I've decided the subject of Guan's immortality. Luiz4200 had brought it up in his review and I felt it was well worth my two cents on the matter.**

**As I have said in the chapter. Guan still exists because he balances out Chase existing. It's like with the concept of Yin and Yang needing each other to exist.**

**In regards to **_**how**_** Guan has lived this long. From my understanding, Chinese mythology sees immortality as something that can be attained by anyone or anything that is powerful or enlightened enough. Its not the only way, methods like Chase's also exists but with enough power you wouldn't need mystic potions or elixirs or potions. The only problem is that the level of power needed isn't that easy to get. Applying it Guan, he's immortal because he is just that good.**

**I'd love to hear what you think.**


	19. Alone?

**Authors note: Here is the new chapter posted up. I had intended to have it up last week but things like moving flats and having my internet down got in the way. Sorry.**

**Though something worth noting did happen last week. After asking a while a ago if anyone artistically inclined would be interested in doing a picture of Demon Rai and finally someone answered the call. E – Dantes has posted a picture of Deviant Art, appropriately named "Demon of Wind", that I feel looks nice but also captures the look I was going for with Rai as well as the Spear of Dashi plus it throws in Kimiko for good measure. So a big thank you goes out her. Anyone else that wants to have go a doing a piece, please do, I would love to see it.**

**Well before I lose track of why you are reading what I've written, on with the story.**

"So let me get this straight," Rai's mind clone asked, "Chase tells you at some point in the future there's going to be a 'Heylin' and in some way, your choice is going decide the outcome?"

"You're in my head. You were there, why are you asking me this?" Rai asked.

"Well why are you sneaking around Guan's armoury?"

"Touché," Rai muttered as he put the spear he had been inspecting back.

"All I'm saying is that Chase's warning is effectively worth zip," Clone Rai complained, "I mean were probably in the same situation than if Chase hadn't said anything. Worse probably since now we're stuck looking over our shoulders. How exactly are we meant to explain all this to the rest of the gang?"

"Simple we're not," Rai answered, "if something I choose is going to decide the outcome then its my problem and no one else's."

"Uh, that sounds like a bad idea," the clone said, "and when a part of your own mind doesn't agree with it shouldn't be hearing alarm bells."

Rai let out a groan as he felt a headache starting to form. "Look I know I'm the only one who can hear you but would you mind shutting up before we're caught."

"Oh please, this is all in your head, no matter how loud I get no one is gonna hear me." To prove his point Clone-Rai morphed a big drum on his back and a pair of cymbals in his hands. He then started playing, very badly. "I AM SO GREAT! I AM SO GREAT! EVERYBODY LOVES ME! I AM SO GREAT!"

Clone Rai stopped playing when he found himself surrounded by a whole hoard of undead jellyfish-gerbils. There was a moment of silence and then...

"ARGHHH!!! THEY'RE ATTACKING ME! GET THEM OFF GET THEM OFF!

Rai just stared at what was unfolding. "Man I have some serious issues."

"You really do," Young Rai agreed.

Rai started rummaging through some drawers as a bunch of tigers came in to have they're turn at bashing around clone-Rai.

"So me-junior, since you're not going anywhere," Rai opened a different drawer, "what's your opinion on the up and coming events."

"I wish our friends would come back from they're dumb old quest to help us." Rai junior replied, meanwhile the tigers left and a mob of griffins started attacking Clone Rai.

"Hey! Curb the attitude!" Rai warned as the griffins left and some angry old ladies armed with brick filled handbags came in for their turn, "Its not a dumb quest."

"It means that we're alone again so that makes it dumb."

"Well I'm sure that they'll be back before trouble strikes in the mean time go watch my copy be mauled by a bear or something."

Rai-clone stopped fending off the old ladies, "bear?" As those words were uttered a giant grizzly was standing behind him. "Crude."

Rai stopped searching for a moment to stare in slightly sickened awe as the bear started to do its work. "Ok why exactly is this display unfolding?"

"Who knows, it might be a representation of the strife you have had to live in your life, a message from your sub conscious that your losing the level of cool unbeatable demon mojo you once or maybe a sign of some suppressed masochism." Young Rai pulled out a bowl of popcorn from his back and started eating. "Either way it makes for some great watching."

Rai looked at Young Rai. "Didn't you use to be just a whiny emo baby? What happened?"

Young Rai shrug, "I don't know, character development?"

Rai paused and shrugged before returning to his rummaging until he finally found what he was looking for; a Dadao. Rai gave the single edged sword a practice swing.

"Oh yeah now that's what I'm talking about." Rai started to leave the armoury. "Hey tiny, I've got to go, mind helping my clone out?"

"No need, the bear's lost interest now that he's stopped moving," Young Rai replied, "and it looks like Lassie is coming to the rescue. Where you off to?"

"To reclaim some Mojo." Rai replied.

The mangled heap known as Clone Rai looked up to see the fictional Collie walking up to him. "Oh Lassie! Thank goodness you're here. Take my hand and...ARGH!"

Young Rai shielded his eyes. "Ooh, wrong choice of words."

* * *

Master Monk Guan was on the phone with Master Fung, giving him a progress report of how things were going with Rai.

"Everything is going fine?" Master Fung.

"Absolutely fine," Guan replied, "despite our history Rai has been a respectful and well mannered pupil."

On pure reflex alone, Guan caught an incoming rock that had been aimed for his head. He turned his head to see Rai standing in the doorway, "Yo! Bat Guano! Me and you got some fighting to do."

"Master Fung, I'll call you back." Guan hung up. "Rai! What is the meaning of this!!"

"Look you may be an Immortal but I know when someone going easy on me. If your idea of training is the kiddy treatment, its time for me to leave. If not then lose the gloves and the bo staffs and show me what you got."

"As you wish," Guan picked up his spear and charged at Rai. Rai charged back but at the last moment Rai leapt into the air and out of a window. Rai briefly stuck his head back in.

"How about we take this outside? less property to damage."

Guan crouched and leapt out the window as well. Only to get a double kick to the back in mid air. Guan landed on the ground hard with Rai standing on top of him.

"Whoops, forgot to call a time out, my bad."

Guan let out a growl as he quickly rolled onto his back. Rai jumped off and into a combat stance, sword held high. Guan kicked up to his feet and spun his spear into an attack stance. The warriors then ran at each other.

What happened next was a flurry of attacks, blocks and dodges from both sides. Neither were willing to give an inch. That was until Guan gave diagonal cut Rai hadn't been expecting.

Rai jumped back but not in time dodge the attack completely. The end result was a long but very shallow across his chest. Rai wouldn't have stopped if Guan hadn't ordered him too.

"Rai, that's enough. I don't know what you were trying to achieve but I'm not going to fight you while you're injured."

"I was trying to take my training up a notch the only way I know how, " Rai answered but in his head he was repeating mantra _I need to get stronger. I need to be ready._

Guan didn't seem to by Rai's excuse. "Well don't take the training up **another** notch or else it might kill you. Come I'll take you to infirmary."

Once in the infirmary Guan, made Rai sit down. Guan opened a drawer and pulled out a jar.

"This balm is charmed to promote clean and natural healing," Guan explained, "now I know that you are not harmed by things that are charged with positive Chi but it would be best to lower your illusion charm as it may react with the balm ."

"illusion charm? I don't know what you're on about."

Guan didn't buy it though. "It's subtle and the change to your body is minuscule so it usually goes unnoticed. Its in place to hide your scars isn't it?" Rai just sat silently but Guan had the feeling that a line had been crossed. "I apologise, its not my place."

"Wuya put it on me," Rai explained, "she didn't like the idea of parading a scarred apprentice. I see through it but I can't turn it off."

"I see."

"Just put the stuff on, the charm shorts out when touched by good chi but comes back up later."

"As you wish." As the balm was applied, Rai felt cooling sensation. He also felt Guans eyes gazing intently at his chest as the numerous scars started to reveal themselves.

"What are you doing down there, counting them?"

"I'm merely intrigued with the markings that the charm does not conceal."

Rai rolled his eyes. "Sure you are."

"The fact that they can not be covered by the illusion charm would indicate that they were magical in nature," Guan noted, "and not made by Wuya."

Rai started giving Guan the silent treatment. Once Guan was finished applying the balm, he started bandaging the wound while he continued to talk. "Burdens are easier to carry if shared. Sometimes the act of talking with a friend can be healing in itself."

"Not my style."

"1500 years ago fighting for the Xiaolin Side wasn't your style either," Guan said wisely, "all it took was you being willing to take a chance."

Rai stared thoughtfully at Guan. As he looked back to events that had unfolded since.

"Alright friend, what did you want to talk about?"

* * *

"Are you we are headed in the right direction?" Vlad asked.

"For the last time yes," Jack rechecked his Wu detector, "According to this, the Rio Reverso is located nearby."

"And why do Wuya and Hannibal need it for their master plan."

"Hey I have a part in the master plan," Jack whined, "and watch it with talking about the MP in public."

"Sorry," Vlad replied "but what does the Rio Reverso do?"

Jack let out a sigh. "The Rio Reverso has the power to return anything to it's original form."

"Anything or **anyone**." Rai stepped out from behind a tree. "Sounds like someone's scheming a resurrection. Care to share?"

"The Wind Demon!" Vlad jumped back into an attack stance. "The Xiaolin warriors must be near by."

"Relax Vlad, the Xiaolin Nimrods are searching for the treasure of the blind swordsman." Jack rubbed his hands together, "it's just him and us."

"Hey, Vlad is it? Can I ask you something?" Rai lent against a tree, "you seem like someone with an IQ higher than a rock, why are you working for a bed wetting cry baby like Jack?"

"Oh no, this is not the real Jack, this is robo-Jack." Vlad stretched out 'Jacks' neck until Rai could see the wiring. "See?"

"So instead of working for a bed wetting cry baby, you're working for the cheap knock off of a bed wetting cry baby."

"That's right." There was a pause. "Wait."

"I'll show you cheap knock off. JACK-BOTS ATTACK!"

A group of Jack-bots appeared and surrounded Rai

"Ah I see, going with what doesn't work. Oh well like they say, six millionth times the charm." Rai let out a yawn and a stretch. "So what they gonna do this time? Claws? Drills? Buzz saws?" The Jack-bots chests opened to reveal guns. "Ok then."

"FIRE!"

"Hey that's Kimiko's line!" Before Rai could say any thing else he was bombarded by on all ends. Soon a dust cloud was forming but the Jack-bots kept on firing.

"Yes!" Robo-Jack, "we got em."

"Most definitely," Vlad agreed.

Vlad and Robo-Jack started laughing as they watched the Jack-bots kept on firing.

"Keep it up you tin cans," Rai cheered on, "if you let up now that lovable rouge may escape."

"Don't sweat it Rai there is no way that Rai could have dodged that," Robo Jack soon did a double take. "RAI!"

"You're right," Rai agreed, "it would take an incredibly fast, incredibly skilled and incredibly good looking individual to dodge something like that."

"But but...you were there... now your hear and..." Robo Jack started stammering uncontrollably.

"Yeah about that; you see I was going to stand there and just let you shot me but then I decided not to," Rai explained. "Instead I went sight seeing and found this." Rai held up the Rio Reverso.

Robo Jack went bug eyed for a moment. "JACK BOTS! GET HIM!" After a moment of nothing happening Jack and Vlad turned to see all that remained of the Jack-Bots were some bullet ridden heaps.

"You know there might be a reason for not having Jack-bots in a circle when they are shooting," Rai said thoughtfully. "Oh well since they're gone how about we make things interesting."

"Huh?" Vlad and Robo Jack said in unison.

Rai used his foot to draw a circle in the ground. He then dropped the Wu in the middle. "Ok rules are simple, get the Wu out of the circle and its yours."

"Just like that?" Robo Jack asked.

"Yep but the catch is that we're doing it old school." Rai raised his fists. "No wind and no Wu."

Vlad and Robo Jack looked at each before turning back to Rai grinning evilly. They then charged at Rai. Rai just waited for right moment to jump into the air and split kick them both in the head. Vlad and Robo Jack went flying in different directions while Rai landed into another attack stance. Robo Jack recovered first and can in with a flying jump kick. Rai ducked and grabbed the robots leg and used its moment to send it flying.

Vlad ran in some wild punches. Rai countered by dropping to ground and spinning on his hands, kicked Vlad in the chest and back of the knees. The result was Vlad doing an involuntary back flip into a belly flop.

Robo Jack came in spinning like a top. Rai flipped over the in coming top then, in mid flip, grabbed on to Robo Jack's head. When Rai's feet touched the ground, Robo Jack become upside down and air born. Rai smirked as he watched Robo Jack fly off. "A true warrior knows not to try to stop a river," Rai said, sounding exactly like Master Fung, "but instead to make it flow the way that he wants it to."

Vlad was back on his feet and breathing angrily. Rai, not wanting to give him time to capitalise, ran up to Vlad and vaulted from his chest upwards. When Rai finally came back down, he brought his heel down hard on to the top of Vlad's head. The Vlad vibrated slightly as the force of the blow went from the top Vlad's head, all the way through his body to the ground. After a moment, Vlad collapsed. "Sweet move eh?" Rai asked the collapsed Vlad. "I modified it from something Clay taught me."

"That's it," Robo Jack said angrily, "no more Mr Nice Bot." Robo Jacks right hand came off and in its place was a long blade. In reply, Rai brought out the Dadao he had found in Guan's armoury. Two fighters faced off. At the sound of a cricket chirping, they charged at each other. At the right moment Rai leapt and striked. Rai's feet landed on the ground followed by the two halves of Robo Jack.

"I'm so happy Guan let me keep you," Rai said affectionately to the blade.

"What what wwwaaaass that-oo...?" asked the malfunctioning Robot.

"Omi's leopard strike," Rai answered, "with a dash demon added for flavour."

With there being no more opposition, Rai picked up the Rio Reverso.

"Well this has been fun but I've got to go. No no no don't get up, I'll let myself out."

* * *

Rai arrived back at Guan's temple with even more on his mind than when he had left. The encounter with dumb and dumb-bot had brought some new titbits but nothing even close to a clear answer. What was Wuya and Hannibal planning? And was that what Chase had tried to warn Rai about.

"RAI!"

Rai was brought back to reality by someone calling his name. When found the source he saw that is was Clay, Kimiko and Omi, back from their quest, running towards him. In that moment he realised something crucial; regardless of what the future held, whether or not Rai had to face it alone was up to him.

"Guys, its so great to see you guys again and I want to hear all about your trip but before that; we've got to talk."

**Author's Note: I hope you liked that. Let me know what you think. I had hoped to get more of the dragons into this chapter but it just didn't turn like I expected it to. Don't you hate it when a chapter takes control like that**

**For those who are interested. A Dadao is special kind of Dao (Chinese saber) that was made to be used with one hand or two. I chose that instead of just using a Dao because in my opinion, the Sword of the Storm is based more on a Dadao than a Dao and that's also what I pictured the Nexus blade.**

**Until next time**

**Mr Makulu  
**


	20. Omens

**Author's note: hi everyone. Don't worry the story still lives. Sorry about missing a month but I had relatives visiting from overseas so I spent quite a bit of my time with them. That said its great to have another chapter posted. I hope you enjoy it. Let me know what you think.**

"So Chase Young told you all of this just like that?" Kimiko said, clearly as disbelieving as some of the others.

"Yeah I know by it self it sounds pretty screwy to me too," Rai agreed, "but if you combine that with the rest of the signs then it starts making sense."

"Signs?" Omi asked, "do you mean what you heard Vlad and Robo-Jack talk about?"

"Yeah but its more than that." Rai shifted slightly. "At first everything has been going pretty much business as usual. Wu activates, mad dash, smash a few robots, fight Jack, Wuya and/or any henchman that they have decided to bring. Then, shortly after the whole Shadow Slicer incident, nothing. All of a sudden the big players stop being so interested in Wu and all we've got left is some minor leaguers trying their hand at the get powerful quick game. You don't have to have been on the Heylin side to know that they don't just give up the chase like that unless they have something big planned."

"How big are ya thinking, partner?" Clay asked.

"If it involves the Rio Reverser, its already too big for my liking regardless." Without really thinking about it Rai rested his hand on his signature dagger, a souvenir from someone he definitely wanted to stay dead, he quickly covered it by stretching as he decided to move on to the next topic. "So how did the hunt for the treasure of the blind swordsman go?"

"Well we got our Wudai weapons alright but then we...kinda lost the treasure?"

"...what?"

"Hey we didn't do it on purpose," Kimiko hastily explained, "we were having issues with our Wudai weapons, then Jack and Wuya kidnapped the old guy who was protecting the treasure so we had go save him but when we got back the treasure was missing."

Rai and Guan looked at each other for a moment.

"Hannibal," They said in unison.

"Hannibal?" Omi asked.

"Yep," Rai replied, "that little stunt has Hannibal written all over it. And the future is beginning look like it has a near end of world experience written over it."

"But what use would the treasure be to them?" Kimiko asked, "when we opened it, nothing happened."

"Did you try picturing what you wanted?"

"Come again."

"Yeah sure, for the treasure of the blind swordsman to work the person has to actually want something other just to open the box. Didn't you guys know that?"

The veins popped out in all three warriors foreheads.

"No," Kimiko said, "but a heads up would have been nice."

"Hm...you might have a point...oh well no use worrying about that now. We need a plan." Rai stood still for a moment, completely lost in thought. "I've got! We find Jack, drive a stake through his heart, cut off his head, throw it into the nearest river, burn his body, pour virgin's tears onto the ashes and then scatter them to the four winds."

"And how would that help us get the treasure of the blind swordsman back?" Clay asked.

Rai stared Clay blankly, "get the what-now back?"

"Perhaps we should take a break and enjoy the meal I have prepared for Wudai warriors," Guan interjected. "A full stomach and a nights rest will better prepare us for think how we will combat the unrest."

"Well I can't fight that logic, Clay said rubbing his hands together, "Lead the way to the grub."

Guan started to lead the warriors inside to the dinning hall when Rai stopped. He turned and stared out to the horizon, suddenly very alert.

"Rai?"

Rai knew something was coming, he call sense it, feel it, taste it. Something was coming to the temple, something powerful, something unpredictable, something unstoppable, something that if the temple was unprepared for could have disastrous consequences.

Unnerved by the sudden intensity in Rai's expression, the Wudai Warriors quickly pulled out their weapons. "Uh Rai?" Kimiko asked, "what do you sense?"

"Storm's coming."

Everyone else promptly face-faulted.

* * *

"Alright books, prepare to call me mommy."

Kimiko took the first book out of the pile she had made and started reading. Three months of research and she still wasn't any closer to finding something would cure Rai. The fact that she had to do this alone and couldn't tell anyone didn't help but she wasn't going to give up. Kimiko had decided to use the storm as an opportunity to have a read through some of the books it Guan's library which, though not as old as the Xiaolin temple's one, was still highly extensive.

And it meant a lot of reading. After the last three months Kimiko had learn to suppress her groan reflex, mostly.

"I see you have found my library."

Kimiko jumped back and would have fallen off her seat if Guan hadn't caught her. She chuckled nervously. "Thanks."

"You are welcome." Guan returned Kimiko to the upright sitting position." Though it is always good to see a pupil that is enthusiastic about learning wouldn't you rather be taking some time off to recover from your quest?"

"Just making sure my mind's still sharp after the long trip."

"By reading texts on spiritual cleansing?"

"Hey," Kimiko replied weakly as she felt her cover up falling apart, "a girls allowed a weird hobby or two."

An awkward silence passed before before Guan took one of the books from Kimiko's pile and put it back on the shelf.

"I've already read through this one, Ka-shing Lao was a great Master of his art but for any of his spells to work the demon inside Rai would have to still be alive and the containment spell complicates it further."

That almost cause Kimiko to go bug eyed. "You know that Rai's..."she stopped herself from finishing that sentence, fearing what saying it out loud may do.

"Unique? Far more unique than I first realised." the way Guan said unique seemed to leave no room doubt what Guan had been referring.

"How did you find out?" Despite the fact that she might been out of line in her heart she felt in some way that she had a right to know.

"I saw the markings on his chest when I treated a wound on him. The rest was a matter of connecting the right dots, asking the right questions and him trusting me enough to answer them." Guan looked at another book from the pile. "The ones in this one would only be effective if we have a more specific idea of what kind of demon it was, preferably a name too." He placed it back on a shelf. "So how did you find out?"

"Didn't Rai tell you?"

Guan shook his head. "Until I saw you with those books I didn't know he had told anyone else, he probably didn't want you to get into trouble, but it makes a lot more sense knowing that he had told someone else first."

Kimiko let out a sigh of relief, she hadn't realised how important it was for her to know that Rai would keep her secrets just like she would keep his. "When he took me to the woods to give me the Spear of Dashi he let slip that his mum had been human, when I asked about it he continued on to explain the broad brush strokes of how he become what he is. But what do you mean it makes sense?"

"When one has a past like Rai must have had, its hard to share but after being able to the first time it gets easier."

"So did he tell you not to tell the temple as well?"

"No but he knows that I wouldn't." Guan pulled up a chair and sat down. "Just like I know he wouldn't want me to."

"You seem to know a lot about a guy that you used to fight against in the old days."

"The relationship between me and Rai back then was...interesting," Guan explained, "though we fought, there was an almost understanding between us. As opposed to Chase and some of the others from the Heylin side, neither of took our fighting personally. He was Heylin, I was Xiaolin, we battle out of the principle of the matter."

"So it was a punch-clock rivalry? Did you ever think that Rai wasn't doing it completely out of free will."

"As I faced Rai time and time again, I began to see that despite his loyalty he didn't share Wuya's enthusiasm for world conquest." Guan continued, "but I didn't truly comprehend how different Rai was until the incident at the valley in the land of neither here nor there.":

"Me, Dashi, Chase and a trope of soldiers had been chasing after Rai. It was about an incident involving the emperor's daughter that I'd rather not discuss. The terrain had given us an advantage. It was too uneven and Rai wasn't familiar enough with the landscape to risk going at full speed. I, on the other hand, had grown up nearby and knew the area. I was able to keep up with Rai but was separated from the others. Soon we got to an old bridge that crossed the valley. We raced across it but before we could get completely across the ropes snapped. We jumped for it, Rai had been close enough to clear it with ease. I realised just after I jumped with all my might that it wouldn't have been enough to clear it. I was about to make my peace with the world when I felt someone grab my arm and save me; it had been Rai."

"After that day I started seeing him and his actions differently. I tried approach Chase and Dashi about it but Rai was still Wuya's loyal apprentice. Any objections I had stopped matter when Rai received orders from Wuya to kill us."

Kimiko thought back to something Rai had said in the forest.

_I suppose I actually should be grateful to Dashi; he was able to trap me before I did something worse..._

"So it had been the best thing to do, turning him into stone."

"Yes," Guan agreed, "Rai wasn't meant for that time. Seeing how he is making a life for this time only proves that. Looking back I still agree with what we did, I'm just not sure I still agree with why we did it."

"And that's why you're looking for a cure as well." Kimiko surmised, Guan nodded in return.

"If we find something that may work, I'll approach Rai about it. Until then, knowledge of this search doesn't leave this room."

Kimiko nodded, she understood why it had to be this way, she didn't like it but she understood.

"I just don't get it," Kimiko said, "on some level I can understand why he doesn't want the world to know what he was and/or is but he's not even trying to find a cure. Sometimes it's as if he doesn't want to be human."

"Do you honestly believe that about him?"

"No, not in my heart but he's got people willing to help him now, why is he so certain that the answer isn't out that he isn't even willing to try."

"Kimiko in my lifetime I have met all manner of people and when I look at Rai I don't see someone who is afraid of failure. I see someone who has been hurt before and is afraid of getting his hopes crushed again."

* * *

Clay stared out the window at the storm that was in full force. While looking out he noticed that Omi had come to stand beside him. After a moment of silence before Clay broke the silence. "Well little buddy, looks like Rai knew what he was talking about. He predicted a storm and here it is."

"He predicted more then just a storm," Omi replied, "do you think he knows what he is talking about with those as well?"

"Well I don't like to just follow someone wholeheartedly on the grounds that they're a so called expert in the field." Clay paused for a moment to scratch the back of his head. "That said what he said is making a lot of sense and if we're not in the business of listening to people who make sense we won't be in business for very long."

"In deed you are correct, Clay," Omi agreed, "but I am not worried, no matter how powerful the side of evil get they will be no match for us and our allies."

"So is Rai part of that list?" Clay asked

"Of course he is," Omi replied

"Even though he's a demon?"

Omi looked away from the window and up at Clay. "You remember the first Wudai Quest we took?"

"Ya mean the one where the Bird of Paradise turned out to be an old lady who couldn't carry a tune in a bucket?"

"Precisely and one of the lessons we learned was to not let our assumptions get the better of us. Perhaps for too long people were obsessed with _what_ was and not taking the time to see _who_ he was. And the longer he stays on the Xiaolin side the more glimpses I see of someone I would be proud to fight beside."

Clay smiled proudly at Omi. "Well I reckon nobody could have said it better than that." Both Wudai returned to starring at the storm. "So where is our resident Demon anyway?"

"Out there," Omi explained, "He mentioned something about hunting omens."

"Ya kidding me? Only someone out of their would go out in this weather."

"I agree most heartedly."

For a moment both were silent.

"Two day's sweeping duty says that Kimiko goes out to join Rai before the nights out."

"You are on, my friend."

* * *

The storm continued. Rai stood on the roof of one of the highest building in Monk Guan's Temple. Getting up there had been as easy as could be expected. There had been a window near the top which meant that Rai had been able to get to the roof with minimal scaling of the outside wall, which beats the idea of having to scale a tower this big on the outside from the ground up.

_Been there, done that but that was then and this is now which means it's time to go omen hunting._

Before being turned into a demon his mother had taught him that it was in storms like these that spirits of another plain would come out to play. If you exposed your self to the elements the spirits would give you signs of what the future held. Not small things like your fortune for tomorrow, more like omens for major world changing events. Which was exactly the kind of info Rai was needed.

Thunder came seemingly from all directions.

_Conflict._

The wind blew first from the east and then from the west.

_The meeting of two forces at this point._

The wind died down, leaving only a steady down pour.

_And rain. Lots and lots of Rain._

"What are you doing up here?" Kimiko demanded, "trying to turn your self into a lightning rod!?"

"No I am exposing my self to the elements so that the spirits of chaos that run wild in such storms may send me an omen about what the future holds us and the temple."

"Alright fine, if you're going to hide behind your twisted jokes, don't tell me but only a lunatic would be on a roof in this weather."

"I had a traumatic childhood, what's your excuse?"

"Hey! I'm not a lunatic! I'm up here cause I wanted to talk to you. And at least I had the sense to put on the Jetbutsu." Kimiko replied, pointing to her feet.

"Ok I'm listening."

"Rai," Kimiko took in a deep breath to steady her nerves. "I just want you to know that I'm not like them."

That got Rai's attention. "Not like who?"

"Not like who ever it was that hurt you."

Rai raised an eyebrow."That's a pretty big list so you're gonna have to be more specific." he walked in and closed some of the distance between him and Kimiko. He walked along the ridge of the roof like a tightrope with the skill and ease of someone that had a lot of experience. Kimiko lowered her eyes realising just how stupid what she just said must have sounded. She then raised her gaze when she felt Rai wrapping his outer robe over her shoulders. "but I appreciate the sentiment." Before Kimiko could protest against Rai giving up his robe, he morphed it slightly so that it had a hood and pulled it up onto her head. "Dragons smell funny when they get wet."

Kimiko looked down slightly. The robe was making a difference and she could all of her body starting to warm up, including her face. "Why do you have to cheapen a good deed with a smart remark?"

Rai gave a small smile. "Well if I'm not careful you might expect me to be good all the time."

Instead of Kimiko, the weather decided to reply, with a lightning bolt, two feet away from Rai was standing. On instinct, Rai jumped away from it, not the smartest thing to do when your standing on a roof. Rai only realised this when he lost his footing and fell over the edge. Instead of falling to the ground, Rai came to a sudden stop when he felt something grab his arm. After staring at the inky blacks below him, he finally looked up to see that the something was a someone; Kimiko.

"Come on Rai," Kimiko groaned as she struggled to pull Rai up, "when ever you feel like helping out.

After a moment of being stunned, Rai used his free hand to grab onto the ledge. With the combined strength, Rai was back on the roof. Both Rai and Kimiko sat there, just breathing neither one trusting them selves to speak. In a moment of clarity the omen revealed it self to Rai.

_Conflict. A strike. A reaction. Instincts blinding me. A moment in limbo. Kimiko between me and oblivion._

"Rai," Kimiko said carefully, "I know you have reason for being up here but can we please get down now?"

"Yeah, I think I've gotten all this storm is willing to give me."

* * *

Once they were back inside, Kimiko took of Rai's outer robe. "Here you go."

"Thanks," Rai said, "So just out curiosity, why did you feel the need to establish the fact that you're not like the people that've hurt me?"

Kimiko rubbed her arm slightly. "Well I was talking to Master Guan."

"That can't be good."

"It wasn't bad, it just made me realise how we may seem like the people that hunted you sometimes."

Rai raised an eyebrow. "I've been a part of the good guys for a hundred and thirteen days and you've only figured this out now?"

"You've been counting?!"

"Yep, I like to keep track of things, so much of my life has gone into the 'a lot' category." Rai started to head to the showers. Kimiko followed u "The amount of people that have hurt me to date? A lot. The amount of attempts at my life to date? A lot. The amount of times I've fallen over the edge to date? A lot. The amount of times to date there's been someone to catch me before I reach the bottom?"

"A lot?"

"No," Rai said before closing the door. "Once."


	21. BLAM

**Author's Note: Hello, Happy New Year to all and I hope that you had great holidays. Mine was good but since I work in retail it's my busiest period as opposed to it being quiet which is the main reason for the delay. That and good old fashioned writer's block.**

**I hope the fact that this is the longest chapter I've ever posted on makes up for it slightly. But enough delays. On with the story**

"Man this going to going to great," Rai said triumphantly, "this going to so great. While Guan and co are in town I have the day to myself. The means I'll able to gain my focus with the manly tea Master Chu makes, have a few power naps, all after some meditation to make the universe one with **me**." Rai stopped for a moment to process what he had just said. "Wow, am I that insecure that I now need to add testosterone to how I describe my day?" Rai paused again. "And why am I here talking to myself? I mean _actually_ talking to myself. Usually I have at least one or two imaginary friends to talk to." Rai stopped to consider possibilities before grabbing his head in panic. "Oh God, it's finally happened. Being around people that don't want me dead has finally driven me **sane!!**"

"Oh get a hold of yourself man, we're still here!"

Rai turned his head to see his copy standing there. "You are?"

"Yeah we just feel that since your friends are back you should be spending less time with us and more time with them."

"Yeah you're right; I'd better go see them off." Rai walked off but then came back. "Look, I have to ask otherwise I'll be wondering about this the whole day; why are you naked?"

"Because I can Rai, because I can."

* * *

"Wouldn't it be easier to use Dojo or some Wu to get to town?" Kimiko asked.

"Easier yes," Guan concurred, "but bicycles are a lot more satisfying."

"It is mighty decent of ya to give us this day in town," Clay said to Guan.

"It is my pleasure." Guan replied, "I needed to run a errand so I welcome the company, besides, sometimes a day of rest away from the problems of life helps makes the solutions make themselves clearer."

"Why is Rai not coming with us?" Omi asked.

Guan replied, "It's a chance for him to have a day away from **me**."

Dojo stuck his head out of the basket on Clay's bike. "Well if you ask me I won't relax unless I have that no good demon a mile away from me."

"Dojo, Rai hasn't even tried to eat ya." Clay said, "Won't ya just let yer grudge go?"

"No I won't let my grudge go because I know him for what he really is." Dojo said heatedly. "And if the Emperor's daughter was still alive she'd be witness to this as well."

"What's this about an Emperor's daughter?" Clay asked.

Meanwhile Rai walked up to Kimiko. "Hey girl, all set for your bike trip to town?"

"Yeah I'm all set," Kimiko replied, "Sure you don't want come along."

"Nah, thanks for the invite though," Rai replied as he paused to adjust collar on the robes. This reminded Kimiko of something.

"Hey Rai, I've been meaning to ask, how come you're no longer wearing your Heylin robes?"

"Well Guan finds it just brings up too many memories so he asked me to change to Xiaolin clothes for training," Rai asked, "is that a problem?"

"Not at all," Kimiko quickly replied, "in fact I think you look good in our colours."

Rai smiled but before he could reply he found himself being grabbed by a very angry looking Clay.

"Excuse me," Clay said to Kimiko, "but me and Rai need to have a few words."

"Look Clay I don't know what that Dragon has told you," Rai said quickly, "but that thing with the Emperor's Daughter was completely blown out of proportion."

"How do ya know I was asking about the Emperor's Daughter?" Clay asked.

"Because that's only thing I could think off that would make you this angry," Rai explained, "either that or the pancake incident."

Clay then pinned Rai against a wall. "You told me it was chocolate sauce."

"It probably was," Rai answered, "about 50 years ago."

Clay growled as Kimiko rushed in to try and break it up. "Come on Clay let go of him."

Clay ignored her. "Alright Rai I'm going to asked you just this once and you better not try to Bill Clinton me. Did you try to take that girl's virtue?"

Rai stared at Clay blankly. "You had to ask the question in that particular way didn't you?"

Clay's grip tightened. "Is that a yes?"

"It's a 'it's not what you think'."

Clay loosened his grip slightly. "Explain."

Rai did so, very quickly. "I was sent there to retrieve a powerful object that Wuya thought the girl had which happened to be called a Virtue. When I tried to ask for it civilly she took it the wrong the whole thing just snowballed."

"Wait, back up Rai," Kimiko said, "What's a Virtue?"

"It's magical object created on a magical being's death," Rai explained, "said to be really powerful."

"How powerful?" Kim asked.

"Supposedly if it was done right, they were capable of almost anything.

Kimiko then ran off, "I've just got to check something. Bye Rai!"

Clay put Rai back down. "Sorry bout that, partner. Just had to check."

"That's fine,' Rai replied, "thanks for giving me a chance to explain myself though. The Emperor tried to kill me on the spot."

"Well figured you deserved the benefit of the doubt." Clay replied. "Uh Rai, there's something I wanted to tell you."

"Yeah?"

"We might have our differences," Clay continued, "but I just want you to know that I respect you."

"Uh thanks, I respect you too," Rai replied, "there's something I wanted to tell you as well."

"Really?" Clay asked, "What?"

"Somebody's patented the stick."

Clay stopped and stared. "Are you serious?"

"Completely," Rai explained. "In December 1999, a guy named Ross Eugene Long patented what he called an 'Animal Toy'. It looks like a stick, is used like a stick and is intended to be made of wood or wood composites. I didn't believe it at first myself so I googled the patent and it's legit."

"Wow," Clay scratched his head, "That's..."

"Kinda mind numbing?" Clay nodded, "just give it a few minutes and then it will really hit you."

Clay nodded again, "Well...um...bye."

* * *

"Are you sure this 'virtue' idea couldn't be what we're looking for?" Kimiko asked.

Guan and Kimiko were cycling ahead of the others along the track bike track down the mountain.

"I am not saying that a virtue couldn't cleanse the demon from Rai," Guan explained. "The problem is that virtues are can only be created on the deathbed of powerful magical beings. Even if we were able to find one, it would only be able to work if it was created for the specific reason to remove the demon from Rai."

Kimiko sunk her head slightly as she felt herself come to another dead end.

"Kimiko, I understand how important it is for you to find a cure for Rai but perhaps you should take a break," Guan said, "You have been working harder than what anyone would ask of you. It's commendable but if you do not stop to rest you will work yourself into the ground."

"Ok," Kimiko replied quietly.

"Come on," Master Guan said, "I want to show you the cave where we finally caught Rai."

* * *

"Here you go," A monk said as he placed the tray with a teapot down on the table. "Just the way that you like it."

"Thank you Master Chu," Rai said, taking a moment to bask in the aroma, "you make the best tea."

"Anything for a fellow lover of good tea."

"You know, you're a lot more accepting of me than what the monks at the Xiaolin Temple are."

"Well the way I see it if the founder of this Temple is willing to accept with open arms there's no way that you can be bad," Master Chu replied, "Though after getting talking to some of the monks from the Xiaolin temple I feel I have to ask this; have you ever tried **not** being a demon."

Rai and Master Chu stared at each other for moment. They then burst out laughing.

"Ha ha ha...I can't believe you managed to say that with a straight face."

"Yeah I had to practise it a few times," Master Chu started to walk off, still chuckling as he walked away. "Enjoy the tea."

Rai sat back on his chair. _Aaaaah_ _this is great! Finished my training, had my nap so now I've got the rest of the day to myself until the rest of the guys get back from town. Nothing can spoil this perfect day._

"Prepare to meet your match Xiaolin Losers for it is I! Jack Spicer!"

_Aaaaand boom goes the dynamite._

"Hi Jack," Rai said, "bringing any of your robots in today."

"I don't need my robots to defeat you."

"Still haven't gotten them fixed from the last time I destroyed them huh?"

"Did you have to riddle them with bullets?! I can weld up cuts and breaks, I can dry out water damage and I can bang out dents but bullets are like death for them."

"I'll remember that," Rai replied, "look the rest of the gang isn't here and I pretty much have the day entirely booked so how about I just give you my sword and you cut your own head off."

"Rai! I don't like your decapitation jokes so please stop them."

"Do you even know how to spell decapitation?"

"Yeah it starts with a 'D', as in 'Destroy," Jack pulled out the Thorn of the Thunderbolt, "Now take me to the vault and give me all of your Wu."

Rai raised an eyebrow. "Or what? You'll poke me to death with your fake Wu."

"Hey it's not fake!" As if on cue the end of the Thorn burst it in a cloud of confetti. "What?!....Well try this!" Jack pulled out his 'Silk Spitter' that also exploded into a cloud of confetti. "What the..."

"Jack, imitation Wu won't be able to work like real one no matter how hard you wish them to."

"Hey! I paid good money for them!!" Jack protested.

"Wait, you got conned into buying fake Wu?" Rai asked, "and not only that, copies of Wu you with all common sense should know couldn't be real cause we already have them."

"I was sure to test them before buying." Jack snapped.

"Define test, Jack, did you try out one of the offensive Wu or did you just take the seller's word that 'Shroud of Shadows' he was selling had actually made you invisible?"

Jack huffed. "I wasn't they only one buying. A lot of the others were there as well, including Wuya." Jack was then slapped by Rai. "Owww! What was that for?"

"I'm sorry Jack but if you're using Wuya as a benchmark for intelligence to deserve to be slapped."

That seemed to tick Jack off. "I'll show you that these Wu work! Shroud of Shadows!" Jack threw his 'shroud' over his head. There was a moment of awkward silence.

"You're not invisible Jack."

Jack peeked out of the fake shroud. "Not even a little bit?" Rai just shook his head. "Well that's just perfect," Jack said with a defeated sigh, "well let's get this butt kicking over with."

Rai lifted his fist, seemingly intent on doing just that but after moment dropped it again with a defeated sigh of his own. "Sorry Jack, I'd loved to but you've reached a new level of pathetic and now I would actually feel bad about attacking you."

Jack hung his head. "Just great, now my enemies don't even think I'm worth hitting. I've officially hit the rock bottom of villainy."

"Come on it could be worse," Rai said, "I mean it's not like you wear conned into buying those fake Wu by a smooth talking dragon wearing a blond wig and a fruity shirt." Rai paused as he heard Jack started to whimper. "Oh."

"That's it I'm finished," Jack declared, "I'm going to hang up my bad boy pants for good."

"Don't do that Jack." Rai said, privately shuddering at the mental image of jack without pants, "Look, I've got this fresh tea, an extra cup and the others aren't going to be back for a while so I don't have to be a jerk to you to keep up appearances so how about we sit down have some tea and see if we can't get you back on track."

"Ok, what have I got to lose?" Jack sat down at the table. "Um...I'm kinda hungry so will we be having cookies or sandwiches or something?"

"Jack, I am going to try to help you out," Rai replied, "but if you make this sound like some sissy tea party I'll be forced to Rai-Smite you."

"What do you mean Rai-Smite?"

"The Rai-Smite is single most powerful weapon in my demon-fu arsenal," Rai explained, "It is a technique that no-one has dared attempt since I was turned to stone. It is so powerful that no-one knows what it does because all the people that have witnessed it are dead."

Jack shrunk under the table until he realised something. "Wait, if that technique hasn't been used since you were turned to stone wouldn't all the witnessed be dead anyway cause of old age?"

"Wow Jack, people honestly don't give you enough credit. I've use that threat on at least 12 different people and so far you're the only one that thought of that."

"Really?"

"Yeah, they hear the part of the witnesses all being dead and cave almost instantly."

"Wow, some people will fall for anything...hahaha."

Both demon and boy genius stood and shared a brief chuckle at the expense of humanity. Afterwards they both take a sip of tea. Jack opened his mouth as if to ask something but was cut off by Rai pointing a pencil at him accusingly.

"Ask me for cream and sugar and I swear I'll make this pencil disappear."

"I'm good sir."

* * *

Omi paused for a moment from the noodles he was eating.

"You okay, Omi?" Kimiko asked, The three were busy eating their lunch while they were waiting for Guan to finish his errand.

"My tiger senses are picking up something," Omi explained, "I cannot explain it but it feels as if something really strange and un-natural is happening as we speak."

"How strange and un-natural are we talking?" Clay asked. "Rai giving Jack Spicer a pep-talk or Dojo fighting with a 6 foot fire breathing squirrel?"

Omi paused and thought "Hmm, I am not sure; both sound equally strange and unlikely...."

"GIVE ME THAT ORB YOU OVER GROWN NUT MUNCHER!!"

"...or it might just be the spring rolls." Omi finished.

"Yeah that's probably it." Kimiko and Clay agreed.

At that Dojo arrived at the table, looking battered and slightly burnt. "Well I did it, I was finally able to get you your orb back Omi. You should really keep a closer eye on your stuff."

"Uhh Dojo. That is not the Orb of Tornami."

"What are you talking about Omi, yes it is."

"No it's not. I have the Orb of Tornami right here." Omi pulled out the Orb to prove his point.

"Then what is this?"

Clay picked up Dojo's Orb an inspected it. "What you've got there is a genuine phoney."

"Not too bad as far as imitation Wu goes though," Kimiko commented. "When we get back to the temple we should probably check online to see if anyone is trying to sell fake to unsuspecting knuckle heads."

"Agreed," Omi said, "now let us go find Master Monk Guan."

The Wudai Warriors started to walk off. "Wait! What am I supposed to do with this?" Dojo asked, holding up the fake Orb that Clay had given back to him.

"Either keep it as a souvenir or put it back where ya found it." Clay answered.

Dojo was then left alone at the table. He turned round and came face to face with a giant angry squirrel. "Hi there," Dojo said nervously, "Look this has all been one big misunderstanding so would you by any chance be willing to accept a heartfelt apology?"

* * *

"All I'm saying is that when you're a bad guy you have to expect the good guys to hammer you and you were raiding the temple vault at the time."

"I know," Jack conceded, "but you have to admit that destroying all my Jack-bots and giving me a wedgie on my **birthday** is a bit harsh for the good guys to do. I didn't even get a birthday card from them."

"Hey Jack do you know what I got for my 10th birthday?" Jack shook his head. "A spear to the right butt cheek. I still have the scar and on my 11th birthday I competed the set I completed the set."

Jack winced. "Yeah I get what you're saying but still wish I could get a little respect from you guys or from anyone for that matter. I mean Wuya and Hannibal have this really great scheme going on and they won't let me in on any of it. The only times I'm included is if they need something from me and even then they don't tell me why they need what they need."

"Then why are you sticking with them? Why not just go solo and see what happens?"

"What would happen is that Wuya would break every bone in my body." Jack replied. "Then Hannibal would break everything else and have his bird peck out my eyes."

"Jack you have got to stop being scared of those two." Rai said exasperatedly, "I know the whole 'so evil they had to be locked away' routine might seem impressive but what you've got to remember is that at some point they were dumb enough to get caught."

"Well it's all good and well you telling me that I have to stand up to them." Jack said, "but you don't have to do it."

"Well Jack as someone that has felt the joys of slowly dying on the inside that comes from working for Wuya, I understand what you're going through so I will break character for a little while and help you get your mojo back." Rai pulled out the Shadow Slicer and the sash from his Heylin robes. "Now we can do this one of two ways. One way involves a lot of talking, a lot of listening and a lot blaming your parents. The other involves combining two types of magic to do something that to the Xiaolin side is probably unprecedented, unorthodox and possibly even taboo." Rai then wrapped the sash around the Shadow Slicer. "Talk about your no brainer." Before Jack had the chance to reply there was a bright light.

Realty started to warp itself like it does in a showdown. When it settled again Jack found himself sitting in the front row of a hall full of Rai clones. "What the Heylin?"

One of the Rai-clones took the podium. "Brothers of the black and grey morality. We have among our number tonight one that has lost the faith." There was combined gasp in the audience. "I know but fear not for we will help put this poor misguided and funny smelling albino back on the path of villainy but I to do that will require something special so to help re-establish this young hoodlum's sense of wrongdoing I give you the Heylin Hurricane, the Demon Dynamo, the one man natural disaster. I give you Rai the wind demon."

At the mention of his name, there was a large amount of cheering as Rai appeared on stage, wearing a long flowing black robe with gold trim. "Thank you, thank you now point me to the frail red head that has lost his way." Rai descended down to where Jack was sitting, as he did the band start play back ground music and the Rai clone choir took the stage, ready to contribute. "So Jack stop me if I'm on the wrong track but you've been doing this for a while now."

"Since before the Wu hunting began," Jacked answered.

"And you've fought the good guys more times than you can count."

"Yes."

"And now you think that because they keep beating you, you're a failure as a villain."

"Right," Jack said dejectedly.

"WRONG! Getting beaten by the good guys does make you less of a villain. Did Waterloo make Napoleon less of a villain? Did getting overthrown by Robin Hood make Prince John less of a villain? Did getting decapitated by Van Helsing and his band of merry mortals make Dracula less of a villain? Did getting brutally murdered in a dark alley make what Schumacher did to the Batman franchise less villainous?"

"Uh..." Jack said, "Joel Schumacher is still alive."

"His time will come," Rai promised. "But do you know why losing to the good guys couldn't take their villainy away. Villainy isn't about winning or losing. It's about being bad."

"**Baaaaaaaad!**" the choir sang

"That's right. It's all about being bad. Because the villains aren't being bad the only thing they can be is...?"

"**Saaaaaaaad!**"

"So I've got to ask you Jack; are you bad?"

"I don't know...maybe?" Jack offered but was promptly slapped by Rai.

"Maybe? There is no maybe! People didn't go 'maybe the black death is bad'." Rai took a breath in as he regained his cool. "Let's try this again. Jack, are you the guy always tries to outnumber us with an army of robots?

"Well yeah," Jack agreed, "but you guys keep destroying them."

"Are you the guy that cheats in showdowns purely out of principle?"

"Yeah but..."

"Are you the guy who gloats at every chance?"

"Well yeah..."

"Did you invent the chameleon-bot and use it to steal the temples wu?"

"Yes..."

"Did you have Vlad infiltrate the temple and convince Omi the he would become evil in the future?"

"Yes."

"Did your actions create an evil snowman?"

"Yeah they did."

"Did you attack the temple with an army of green monkeys?"

"Yeah I did." Jack paused for a moment. "Wait, all this happened _before_ you were released, how would you know about it?"

"I read Kimiko's diary."

"Kimiko writes about me in her diary?"

"Only as a way to vent," Rai explained, "Master Fung felt that her stabbing pins into a doll made in your likeness wasn't healthy."

"Oh."

"Back on topic. Jack Spicer are you the one that unleashed the Heylin seed?"

"Yes..."

"Are you the one that caused Hannibal Bean to be unleashed?"

"Yes." Jack was starting to get the hint.

"Did your hands rebuild Mala Mala Jong?"

"Yes!" Jack started to feel something.

"Did you unleash the world destroying spiders?"

"Yes!" The feeling continued to grow.

"Did you release Wuya and start this whole chapter in the fight between good and evil?"

"Yes!" Jack rose to his feet.

"Jack Spicer, are you bad?"

"YES!" Jack's shout echoed through the whole hall. The crowd of Rai-clones broke out into applause. Rai raised his hands and the hall went silent.

"Now do you understand?" Rai asked.

"Yes I do," Jack exclaimed, "it doesn't matter how many times I get beaten. The important is that every bad thing that's happened since the hunt for the Wu began I've had a part in. No matter had bad things can get, I'm the one that manages to make things worse that's what it takes to be a villain."

"That's it." Rai put his arm over Jack's shoulder as the band and the choir started to play towards a climax. "So are you ready to be that villain again?"

"Yeah!"

"Are to ready to take on the world?"

"Yeah!"

"Are you ready to beat the world?"

"Yeah!"

"Are you ready to conquer the world?"

"Yeah!"

"Are you ready to kiss the world?"

"Yeah....wait what?"

"Are you ready to make the world breakfast in bed"

Jack pulled away from Rai. "No I'm not going to make the world breakfast in bed!"

"Damn straight you're not!" Rai agreed, "And why is that?"

"Because I'm evil."

"You're what?"

"I'm evil!"

"I don't think the guys in the back heard you."

"I'M EVIL!!!" As Jack shouted this the hall vanished and he found himself back in the temple. "Thanks Rai this is just what I needed." Jack pumped his fist the air. "LOOK OUT WORLD, SPICER'S BACK!"

At that exclamation, Rai's fist met Jack's face. Rai just shrugged as Jack stared at him in concussion laced dismay. "Now that I've got your self confidence back up I feel alright about hitting you again."

"You know Rai, you're a jerk." Jack wobbled as his world started fading out of focus. "And that's what I like about you."

Rai stared as Jack collapsed to the ground. Knowing that he couldn't just leave him to regain consciousness at Guan's temple, Rai picked up Jack and draped him over his right shoulder and pulled out the Golden Tiger Claws. Not knowing where Jack lived, he instead transport to one of the hospitals that he knew about. He dropped Jack at the door step, pulled out a note pad, wrote a quick note and stuck it to Jack forehead before making his escape.

_My name is Jack Spicer and I was punched in the face by natural causes._

* * *

Rai stepped through the portal and then face to with the troupe of Rai-clones from earlier. Rai suppressed a scream as they all said "Welcome back."

"What are you doing here?" Rai demanded

"You made us," the head clone answered, "remember?"

"Wait so you're still the copies that I created earlier," the clones nodded, causing Rai to let out a sigh of relief, "_phew_! For a moment I thought you guys had been in my head and I don't think my psyche could handle a whole choir. That said shouldn't you guys have vanished when the scenery returned to normal."

"Hey you're the one who combined the illusionary magics of the Shadow Slicer and your Heylin robes." The head clone countered, "How are we supposed to know why we're still here?"

"Good point," Rai conceded, "oh well I'd say it's only temporary and in the slim chance that it's not, I'll go Deus ex Reversing Mirror on you guys. Until then we're a group of like minded individuals that share my ability to hit every tone and pitch. There is one thing we have just **got** to do."

"Have a full on slaughter fest for the right to this body?" a guy in the back offered.

"No, even better."

* * *

Finally back from their trip in town, Clay, Omi and Kimiko were just in kitchen having a drink when Rai stuck his head through the door.

"Hey!" Rai called, "come out to the front courtyard. I've got something to show you."

"It better not be something gross," Kimiko warned

"No its not gross," Rai promised, "I hadn't had time to set up a proper welcome back from your quest so here's something to make up for it."

Rai disappeared out the door again. Kimiko sighed as she put her glass down. "Well let's go see what Rai did this time."

"You go ahead we'll catch up."

So Kimiko walked to the court yard, wondering what it could be that Rai wanted to show her. But truthfully she had gotten to the stage where nothing Rai ever did could surprise her.

Nothing except arriving to the courtyard to find Rai surrounded with enough copies to form a band and a full choir.

_Yeah that was definitely something new._

"This one goes out to a very special someone," Rai said, "hopefully you know who you are. HIT IT!"

At that the band started to play. Rai tapped his foot in time with the music until the time came for him to start singing.

"_Your love, lifting me higher  
Than I've ever been lifted before  
So keep it up  
Quench my desire  
And I'll be at your side, forever more_"

At that Omi and Clay both came out and did a joined spit take in time to see Rai being joined by his back up singers.

"_You know your love_"

"_**your love keeps lifting me**_"

"_Keep on lifting_"

"_**love keeps lifting me**_"

"_Higher_"

"**Lifting me"**  
"_Higher and higher_"

"**higher**"

"_I said your love_"

"**your love keeps lifting me**"

"_Keep on..."_

"**love keeps lifting me"**

"_Lifting me_"

"**lifting me**"

"_Higher and higher_"

"**higher**"

"_Now once I was down hearted  
Disappointment was my closest friend  
But then you came and it soon departed  
And you know he never  
Showed his face again_"

"_that's why your love_"

"_**your love keeps lifting me**_"

"_Keep on lifting_"

"_**love keeps lifting me**_"

"_Higher_"

"**Lifting me"**

"_Higher and higher_"

"**higher**"

"_I said your love_"

"**your love keeps lifting me**"

"_Keep on..._"

"**love keeps lifting me"**

"_Lifting me_"

"**lifting me**"

"_Higher and higher_"

"**higher**"

"Are ya guy's seeing what I'm seeing?" Clay asked.

"Yes and we've just entered a whole new level of insanity," Kimiko answered.

Rai suddenly appeared behind Kimiko and pulled her into a hug. "Don't fight the insanity," he said, "embrace it. Make it your own." And then he started to sing again.

_"I'm so glad, I've finally found you  
Yes, that one, in a million girl  
And now with my loving arms around you  
Honey, I can stand up and face the world"  
_

"Rai..." Kimiko said, her voice a couple of octaves higher.

"Its song hugging," Rai said, "doesn't count."

Before Kimiko could react Rai spun her out and she found herself surrounded by Rais as the chorus began again.

"_You know your love_"

"_**your love keeps lifting me**_"

"_Keep on lifting_"

"_**love keeps lifting me**_"

"Higher"

"**Lifting me"**

"_Higher and higher_"

"**higher**"

"_I said your love_"

"**your love keeps lifting me**"

"_Keep on..."_

"**love keeps lifting me"**

"_Lifting me_"

"**lifting me**"

"_Higher and higher_"

"**higher**"

It then erupted into a dance party. Kimiko tried to resist but in the end she found herself joining in as well. "You win this round Rai."

Rai just smirked.

* * *

After all the fun was over, the Wudai Warriors were walking off to their rooms while they left Rai to get rid of all his copies.

"That was interesting," Omi said.

"Ya," Clay agreed, "could we not mention it ever again though?"

"Why would we not?" Omi asked, "It seems like the sort of event worth mentioning again."

Kimiko was about to reply when she noticed something by a nearby tree. "What's that?"

The three went to inspect it though Omi was the first to comment on what they had found.

"What a colourful dragon."

**Author's Note: I hope you enjoyed it. Let me know what you think. Now for a few extra notes.**

**Firstly I disclaim the song that was used. It is called "****(Your Love Keeps Lifting Me)**** Higher and Higher" by Jackie Wilson. Some of you might know the soft rock version of the song by Rita Coolidge** **or the version that was used to make the Statue of Liberty move in Ghostbusters II. Personally I feel that Rai would have sung the Jackie Wilson version but you guys are allowed to imagine it as any version that you like.**

**Secondly, The title of the chapter, BLAM, stands for Big Lipped Alligator Moment. Those of you who are familiar with a site called Tv Tropes might know what it is and might guess why I picked it as the title for this chapter.**

**Thirdly, the Animal Toy that was mentioned in the chapter does actually exist. Its patent number is 6360693, it was filed on the 2****nd**** December 1999 and was issued on the 26****th**** March 2002.**

**Fourthly, One of Rai's abilities that haven't been brought to attention is his ability to alter his voice to match anyone. It is an extension of the language abilities that he got from Legba (a trickster) and the reason it hasn't been brought up before is simply because there hasn't been a need for Rai to use it until now.**

**Lastly, A first hand account of what happened with the incident to do with the Emperor's Daughter can be found in my story which is aptly named "****That incident with the Emperor's Daughter".**

**Thank you for reading and see you next update.**

**Mr Makulu**


	22. Survival

**Authors Note: Ok I am so sorry that it took me so long to update. There are a lot of reasons for the delay but you guys get tired of hearing them. I will however say that this was too date the toughest chapter for me to get to the stage that I'm satisfied with it. I don't know why but it just didn't want to work with me and some of the most difficult parts were the ones I honestly felt I couldn't afford to cut.**

**I still want to say a pre-emptive thank you to all the readers who are still with me. I just hope this is worth the wait for you.**

**But I won't delay you any longer. On with the story. **

"And then Genghis Kahn rides up, waving the most humungous sword and boasting how he took it from his latest conquest."

In a surprising turn of events the dragon that the three Wudai warriors had found sleeping beside a tree was in fact a supposed "world traveller" named Chucky Choo. The Wudai Warriors believed his story and were currently listening to one of his 'exploits'

"He's surprised to find everyone snickering. Then he looks down and sees the price tag still dangling from the handle." The Wudai Warriors burst out laughing. "Ah you should have seen the look on that palooka's red face. He may have be a tyrant but he was still good people."

"You know so many famous people," Omi said in awe

Chucky downed another large spoonful of ice cream. "Oh, yeah. Attila the Hun, Alexander the Great, Ivan the Terrible. Now, there was a sweetie. Never understood how he got that name."

It was as Chucky was burying his face in his bowl that Dojo decided to make his entrance. "Hey guys, I just checked the fridge, we're all out of ice cream."

"Dojo," Omi said enthusiastically, "there is someone I would like you to meet."

Omi stepped to the side, revealing Chucky. Dojo first went rigid and then started quivering in anger. "You! No-Good! Yo-yo Thief!"

"You guys know each other?" Kimiko asked. Instead of replying Dojo leapt at Chucky and started attacking him.

"My guess would be yes," Omi answered.

Chucky escaped and started running round the room trying to escape. Dojo gave chase while explaining, "this is the no good con-dragon I told you about. The one who stole the family yo-yo."

"You got it all wrong Dojo," Chucky said while cowering behind Omi. Dojo tried to leap at him again but was this time caught by Clay and Kimiko.

"Alright I'll give you he's handsome but chucky choo is more slippery than a..."

"A baby oinker in a pig catching contest?" Clay offered.

"Yeah, when you shake his hand you better count your fingers I'm pretty sure that's how i lost my feet."

"There must be some mistake."

"No, no, there's no mistake," Chucky said ashamedly. "Dojo's right on all accounts."

"LIAR! DON'T LISTEN TO HIM BECAUSE HE...Huh?" Dojo stopped when he realised what Chucky had said. "Go on."

"It's true, I was once a bad dragon who did bad things. But the worse thing I ever did was to lose the friendship of my closest friend." Chucky peeked out from behind his hand to see if Dojo was watching. "But I've changed since then and I hope one day I'll be lucky enough to earn back that friendship." He sniffed for effect and then held out his hand for Dojo to shake. "What do you say dojo?"

Things when well for a moment...until Dojo bit Chucky's hand.

"Well I see I'm getting some mixed signals on how you feel about me." Chucky drooped his head and started to slither off.

"Chucky?" Omi tried to stop him from leaving.

"No I'll be in my room. Out by the end of the day...or the week...end of the month at the very latest and if you run out for more ice cream, you know where to find me."

The Wudai warriors glared at Dojo who simply huffed.

"Come on Dojo," Clay said, "da fella said he was sorry. What more do ya want."

"The family yo-yo back but right now I'd settle for him running into our resident dragon munching demon."

"EIYEE!!!" The shriek echoed through the halls.

The Wudai Warrior ran off while Dojo looked up at the ceiling. "While we're in the business of granting wishes, could Master Fung magically appear with a tub of ice cream?" He paused expectantly. "Dang."

* * *

"Oh come on, Rai why must there be bad blood between us?" Chucky asked while trying get out of the grip that Rai had around his throat. "We had a good thing going, you didn't bother me, I didn't bother you. What went wrong?"

"Selling me out to Dashi bothered me."

"Well I can see how you may be a little upset about that."

"Oh I don't get upset," Rai said, "I get even."

"Still a positive thinker," Chucky said nervously, "I always loved that about you." Rai's grip tightened. "Look I feel bad about that whole Dashi mess so how about I make it up to you."

"Oh Chucky you silly dragon, you don't have to do anything to make it up to me."

Chucky stopped struggling and stared at Rai. "I don't?"

"No," Rai replied, "just accept the agonising pain and probable death that's about to happen like the spineless worm that you are and I'll be happy."

Chucky started to struggle again which only made Rai tighten his grip further. "Look Rai, can't we make a deal? I can get you some primo Shen Gong Wu." Chucky started to gasp and go blue as Rai closed.

"You're already standing in your grave and still you're trying to con me?" Rai asked in amazement.

"It's not a con I swear, me and the Xiaolin Warriors are like this." Chucky showed his crossed fingers. "Give me a chance to work my magic on them then we'll split the take 50-50. What do ya say."

"What do I say?" Rai suddenly adopted an unnervingly cheerful voice. "I say 'die vile scum'."

"I'm alright with 60-40." At that moment the Wudai Warriors burst in. Out shock Rai loosened his grip slightly, just enough that Chucky Choo changed back to his normal colour. "Thank Dashi your here!" Chucky said to the warriors. "This demon jumped me and threatened to kill me if I didn't help him get all your Wu. But I wouldn't do it and now that you're here we can slay this hell spawn...well I'll supervise the slaying."

Rai just stared at Chucky for a moment. "Wow, just wow. There really aren't any expectations low enough for you to meet are there, Chucky?"

"Uh Rai?" Omi asked, "What is Chucky talking about?"

"Well it seems that Chucky here is a little behind in the times. He still thinks I'm Heylin and he was trying to con you guys into killing me to save his own skin." Rai pinched Chucky's cheek very hard. "Isn't he just precious?"

"I'm not conning you guys I swear," Chucky exclaimed. "I don't know what lies this scumbag has told you but back in the day he was Wuya's right hand man."

"Oh come on Chucky, don't downplay my greatness. For the two years I served her I was also her left hand, her two feet and any part of her that actually did anything aside from read scrolls, try out spells and pose in front of mirrors."

"That there is an open confession," Chucky exclaimed, "do something!"

"Well buddy, that's not exactly a confession," Clay admitted, "We already know that about him."

"You do?"

"Yeah they do," Rai agreed, "in fact it was the pretty one that released me."

Omi looked perplexed. "I'm not the one who released Rai, Kimiko did."

There was a moment of awkwardness until Kimiko spoke. "Well...moving on...how do you know Chucky?"

"Well I think I told you guys that I had been sold out to Dashi by a too bit dragon." Rai held up Chucky. "Well here he is."

"Rai I told you, Dashi had me cornered, it was self preservation. You would have done the same thing."

"Yeah but I wouldn't have tried to con you out of your possessions before hand."

"Yeah...I'll admit that might not have been the smartest thing to do."

"Yeah but the dumbest thing you did was bank on Dashi sending me somewhere where I wouldn't come back from." Rai tightened his grip again. "I spared your life and instead doing the smart thing and keeping quiet you decided to blab so now it's time to pay the piper."

"Why does Chucky have to pay a musician?" Omi asked, "Does Chucky owe him money?"

Rai pinched the bridge of his nose with his spare hand. "Omi, I respect you as a warrior and like you as a friend but for love of all things sweet and chocolate flavoured LEARN THE MODERN LANGUAGE!! If a demon locked away for 1500 years can do it, it can't be that hard."

"At least I do not chuckle every time I hear the word 'disembowel'." Omi retorted.

Rai tried to hold a straight face but a chuckle still escaped. "You've got to admit, 'disembowel' is a funny sounding word." Rai drew his attention back to Chucky. "And in a few moments it may become the word of the day."

"Please Rai, you don't want to eat me," Chucky whimpered. "I'd taste terrible and would you look at all the fat on me. Can't be too careful with your cholesterol."

"Didn't you hear? Dragons are good cholesterol. Don't you want me to grow into a big strong demon?"

"Of course, I mean no, I mean sure I'd want you to be healthy I mean..." Chucky stopped himself. "There isn't a right way to answer this question is there?"

"Chucky, relax," Kimiko ordered. "There isn't anyone in this room that wants to see you get eaten by Rai."

At that moment Dojo slithered with a big tray of seasonings. "OK Rai I wasn't sure how you like your Dragon prepared so I brought a bit of everything."

Clay rubbed the back of my neck. "Well...now there is."

"Now he is over 1500 years old so the meat might be a tough," Dojo continued, "but that's nothing a dash of meat tenderiser can't fix."

"Come on Dojo," Chucky said nervously, "you can't be serious."

"You're right," Dojo agreed before pulling out a big mallet. "Give him a few good whacks with this and he'll soften right up."

"Come on Dojo," Chucky said. "I know we have some issues to work out but do you really want me being eaten on your conscious?"

"Sorry Chucky but Yo-yos are thicker than water."

Everyone the room stared blankly for a moment. "Dojo, what you just said made no sense," Rai replied. "But it reminded me of something very important." Rai pulled out a red yo-yo from his pocket. "Remember this?"

Chucky looked at it nervously. "Vaguely."

"Oh? Maybe you'll remember it when I shove it down your throat."

Dojo took one glance at the yo-yo and then went rigid. "The family yo-yo! What are you doing with my family's yo-yo?"

"This worm gave it to me as collateral for sparing his life. Told me it was a family heirloom." Rai explained. "Turns out he was a Young vague on which family it belonged to."

"Well it belongs to my family so give it back right now!" Dojo demanded.

Rai shrugged. "Meh." He then lobbed it Dojo.

"It's good to have you back," Dojo said lovingly to the Yo-yo.

"I am glad for you." Omi said. "And now that you have gotten your cherished family yo-yo back, isn't there something you wanted to say to Chucky?"

"Yes Omi there is something I wanted to him." Dojo answered before turning back Chucky. "YOU GAVE THE FAMILY YO-YO TO RAI!!"

"How was I supposed to know Dash would turn Rai to stone? I just figure I get the yo-yo back from his dead bodyeeeeeeeeeeee!" Chucky started to squeal as Rai applied more pressure. "Could we discuss this when I'm not about to be eaten?"

"For the last time you're not getting eaten." Kimiko said. "Rai the sick joke is over. We all know you don't eat dragons so stop tormenting him."

"Yeah Rai, Kimiko's got a point," Clay agreed, "and isn't it a good thing Chucky sold you out to Dashi?" A moment of awkward silence followed coupled with staring. "Would y'all stop looking at me like I'm some crazy person?"

"No promises."

"Look if Rai hadn't been turned to stone and locked away he wouldn't have met any of us and probably have died still a Heylin and still under Wuya's control."

"Yeah that's right." Chucky seemed to cotton on. "You owe me. Now I'm not going ask a much deserved reward for my services. How about we just shake hands and go our separate ways."

Chucky held out his hand.

Rai smiled......then held out his knife.

"Jack Spicer attacked the temple this morning with some dud wu he had been conned into buying." Rai brought the knife closer to Chucky's throat. "You wouldn't know anything about that now would you?"

"No of course not! I'm good honest dragon who has repented from..." Rai added a bit of pressure with the knife. "Alright! I might have been selling some souvenirs that some people may have mistaken for the real thing."

"Define some people," Rai ordered.

"Just some ground level Heylin nobodies," Chucky assured. "Nothing to worry about."

"You call Wuya nothing to worry about?!"

"Oh hehehe..." Chucky chuckled nervously while it was obvious his life was starting to flash in front of his eyes. "I mean aside from Wuya of course and besides how much trouble could one 1500 year old Heylin witch be?"

There was a moment of awkward silence until Rai spoke again. "I swear I'm going to enjoy this on a deeply disturbing level."

"Rai what are you going to do?" Omi asked.

"I'm going to kill this worm, still working on the details, send his mutilated corpse to Wuya as a peace offering." Rai replied. "If we don't do something now we'll regret it. Wuya gets cranky when people make her look like an idiot."

Dojo remaked, "And the prize for understatement of the century goes to..."

"Rai! You cannot kill him!" Omi said. "That is not the way of a Xiaolin warrior."

"And what if I don't care about the way of a Xiaolin warrior?"

"Then ya have no place on the Xiaolin side." Clay answered.

Rai stared at the three Wudai Warriors saw that they all had the same determined expression. "Are you serious?" Rai couldn't hide the shock in his voice, "you actually value this worm's life more than my place here?"

"No Rai, we value our teaching and upbringing which means we cannot stand by and let someone be murdered like this. No matter who or what they are." Omi answered.

"The real question is what do you value more?" Kimiko asked, "Our friendship or petty revenge."

There was a moment of awkward silence as it dawned on Rai they were actually going to force Rai to make a choice. When realisation struck, Rai threw Chucky . "I'm not going to kill you." Rai told him, "but if you're not out of this temple in five you're gonna start losing body parts."

Chucky, however seeing that the Wudai warriors were still on his side, forgot the lesson of quitting while you're ahead and just dusted himself off casually. "Well sure I could leave but it's getting kinda late so how bout I stay for dinner and leave first thing in the..." Rai's dagger came flying in and landed a millimetre away from Chucky's ear.

"Not. Kidding."

At that Chucky ran like there was no tomorrow. When he was gone, Rai pulled out his dagger from the wall. "There, the backstabbing slimeball is alive to betray us to the Heylin side in order save that mouldy eel-hide he calls a skin, happy?"

Instead of waiting for a reply Rai just walked out. He was down the hall by the time Kimiko came running and blocked off his escape. "Rai what was that?" Kimiko demanded.

Rai paused for a moment, "I believe the technical term is attempted homicide."

"And you're ok with that?!"

"Look, Chucky Choo is a scum spewing parasite that would sell out his own mother to save his skin." Rai answered. "The world would be better off without him and we would be a lot safer. The fact that I really hate him is a side note."

"And that makes it ok? Rai that's not the way it works."

Rai rolled his eyes. "Yes I've already gotten my lecture in Xiaolin morality."

"Damn it Rai! This isn't about being Xiaolin warrior. This is about being a decent human being."

"And that's what everything comes back to doesn't it, about being human." Rai said bitterly, "Well in case you've forgotten, I'm not human; I haven't been one for a very long time and I'm not ever going to be one. That's the fact of life and you'd be an idiot to think otherwise."

Kimiko felt her blood turn cold. "An idiot? You think that I'm an idiot for thinking that you could be human again?" Rai opened his mouth but she didn't give him a chance. "well you know what? This idiot has spent the last three and half months trying find a cure for you."

Kimiko stormed out leaving a stunned Rai behind.

He stood there in shock. His mind buzzing as pieces of the mental puzzle started to fall into place. All this time Kimiko had been looking for a way to cure him.

A way to end the curse.

A way to make him human again.

_And what will happen when she realises it's hopeless? _A voice behind Rai spoke._ We've been down this path before and we know where it leads._

Rai spun round faced the wall. There was a moment silence as Rai stared his shadow. That was until it opened its eye. An all too familiar chill ran down Rai's spine as the silver orbs stared back at him. "You again? We've been through this; I'm done listening to you."

_Oh, you're not done. If you were done I'd be gone._ The shadow took a step foward and went from being a two dimensional image against the wall to being a fully 3D entity. _You can't let go of me just like you can't let go of the memories of the last time you trusted someone. _

"This time is different." Rai insisted.

The silver eyed shadow shrugged. _Maybe, maybe not but regardless the doubt is there. _It started to close the gap between them._ And that gives me strength. Your fear gives me form and you uncertainty gives me power. _

"And this gives you pain!!" A voice shouted.

Before anyone could react, the shadow got whacked by a fold up stepping stool. Holding the stepping stool was Young Rai. "You have no idea how long I've waited to be able to do that."

_You?! What do you want? You sad waste of space._

Young Rai brought the stepping stool down on the fallen shadow's legs. "Having a form isn't all it's cracked up to be, is it?" Young Rai then dropped the steeping stool and walked up to the shadow and grabbed a hold of its head. "Alright creepy eyes I'm going to explain this in a way you'll appreciate." He then proceeded to smash the shadows head into the ground for each word of his next sentence. "You! Are! Out! Of! Business!!" He added in a couple more smashes for luck. "Understand?"

The Shadow didn't even have the will left to lift up his head. _Yes...._

"Good now get out my sight."

As the battered and beaten shadow dissolved out of sight Rai stared in awe at what had happened. "Kid, I can honestly say I did not see that coming. I mean I know you were changing but that was intense. Still props goes to the new you."

Rai held out his hand for a low five. Instead of giving it Young Rai set up the step ladder and climbed it so that he was the right height to be able to slap Rai across the face, which he did.

"Hey! I'm on your side. Why are you hurting me?" Rai paused. "Hey! You're a hallucination. _How_ are you hurting me?"

Instead of answering Young Rai grabbed Rai's shirt and pulled their faces together.

"Alright jerk-wad, listen and listen good." For a hallucination the grip Young Rai had on Rai's shirt was surprisingly strong. "Because of you I have had to put up with a lot during my existence; being hunted, fighting back, serving Wuya, being the villain, seeing faces of the people you were forced to hurt and don't get me started on when you realised girls were nice to look at, but this is where I draw the line. Kimiko is the one good thing that has come out of all this and I'm not going to let you ruin it just because you're scared. You are gonna go and make things right with her or so help me I'll redefine masochism. Got it?!"

"Yes, sir." Rai said meekly. When Young Rai let go, Rai ran for it and never looked back."

* * *

Clay entered the sleeping chambers and saw Kimiko shaped lumped lying in Kimiko's bed so no prizes for guessing who it was.

"Kimi, why are ya moping in bed? If Rai said something stupid just break some of his bones and be done with it."

"I'm not moping!" Kimiko protested, "And this has nothing to do with that Jerk. I'm trying to get to sleep!"

"At three in the afternoon?"

"It's been a long day," Kimiko replied stubbornly, "And I'm stuck on Japanese time."

"So ya trying get to sleep at _four_ in the afternoon?"

Kimiko didn't reply but Clay knew full well she was still awake. He then noticed Rai walking into the room. "Alright fine, I'll leave ya to it. But just remember that winning an argument isn't worth losing a friend."

Clay left but not before give Rai a meaningful glance. What it meant could probably have summed up in two words; _fix this_.

Rai sat down at the foot of Kimiko's bed. "Look I don't really know how this is supposed to work so would admitting I'm the idiot and letting you hurt me a bit help?" Rai got nothing but silence."Yeah I didn't think so either so how about I tell you a bed time story to help you nod off?" Rai didn't wait for a reply which was good because Kimiko wasn't going to give it. "Once upon a time there was a boy. Now this boy didn't want trouble with anyone but was demon so everybody had trouble with him. In fact he had spent what must have been a year running, hiding and living like some animal, always in fear and never sure where was safe. That changed one night when the boy had gotten his leg caught in a trap. He managed to get free but his ankle was mangled up pretty badly. Finally he was able to crawl into a cave. Alone in the dark he accepted that this would probably be his final resting place. It was then that a storm hit causing a woman to seek shelter in the same cave."

Kimiko stuck her head out from under the blanket as Rai continued to tell his story.

"She was a priestess born with ability to wield magic. she belonged to an order which had recently arrived to China from across the sea. She had been sent out to gather herbs before she had gotten caught in the rain. The boy tried to hide but the cave was too small for that. Soon woman found the boy and after realising that the he was harmless and genuinely she took pity on him. Using her powers and her skills with herbs she was heal his ankle. If it hadn't been for her it probably wouldn't have healed properly and instead of losing the ability to walk all that was left was some minor scarring."

Rai exposed his ankle to reveal the scar that was there. "When the storm ended. She had to head home but she promised she would return the next day. Despite knowing it could be a trap the boy believed her and waited. That was kid's first mistake."

"Why?" Kimiko asked, having forgotten about pretending to be asleep. "Didn't she come back?"

"No she came back the next day, and the day after that and the day after that....you get the idea. She brought him food, cared for him, helped remember him what it was like to be human. Soon the young idiot started opening up to her until finally he told her about his past."

Kimiko's eyes widened as it clicked in her mind what past Rai was referring to.

"Well the woman promise she would do everything in her power to try find a cure. She looked, she tried a few things. Nothing worked but she remained hopeful. Finally she had tried everything she could think off and still had made no progress. One morning she came to the cave and told the boy that she had found someone that would be able to help. The boy believed her and held her hand as she led him to her home. He continued to hold her hand right until the arrow grazed his shoulder. It had been a trap. He ran, they chased, right until he ran right off a cliff."

Rai swallowed as he remembered the experience.

"The boy survived somehow, try and rap your head around that one, but that was the point where he accepted his fate and stopped running, if he was going to die a demon he would at least die a fighting one." Rai slumped. "You know what the funny part of all this is? The boy has never stopped believing the priestess had wanted to cure him. She must have found out that it was a lost cause and the only humane thing to do would be to end my misery."

"So that's it?" Kimiko asked, "after all this time to you I'm just like the priestess; Nice for now but intending to kill you when it suits me? Haven't we moved past that stage yet?"

"We have and we haven't," Rai said cryptically. "Why is it so important for you to make me human? Is the hope that someday I'll no longer be demonic the only reason you can bear having me around."

Kimiko felt her anger flare up. "Rai! After everything you still doubt me? I'm trying to help you because that's what friends do! What do I have to do get you realise that I'm your friend."

"Nothing." That single word was enough to silence her. "You're my friend and I'm yours. So as a friend I'm asking; please stop looking for a cure." Kimiko opened her mouth to protest but was silenced by Rai raising his hand. "Before you start a righteous rant, let me finish." Kimiko closed her mouth. "Now let's play out this scenario. You dedicate yourself to finding a cure for me, spending all your time on research and experiments. Slowly months become years and years becomes decades of your precious life whittled away on this crusade. Soon you'll find yourself in cycle that you can't escape, no longer believing the cure exists but unable to give up because it would mean that everything you put into it so far would have been for nothing. Now I could I consider myself a friend if I let you do that?"

"But Rai, after all you've been through," Kimiko protested, "Wouldn't you want a chance to free of it?"

"Free is a relative term." Rai replied, "Besides look at me, for the first time in 1500 years I've got a home, friends, three square meals and places to sleep where I don't have to fear dismemberment. Life is good."

"But if we found a way to remove the demon and make you human, life could be better." Kimiko protested.

"Yeah, about that, with all due respect, have you seen an average human lately? They're not the most impressive thing on the block."

"What do you mean?" Kimiko asked.

"I mean the average human can't run at great speeds, can't sense and can't manipulate the wind." Rai explained. "Becoming human again would be a one way trip to the sidelines."

"Doesn't have to be. You can still fight and we have Wu by the boat load." Kimiko argued. "And even if you stopped active fighting we could still use your experience."

"You're really not going to let this go are you?" The hard look Kimiko gave him was answer enough. "At least think about it."

Kimiko didn't reply but it was a comfortable silence

"Rai," Kimiko said tentatively. "What happened today with Chucky can't happen again. Just because you're a demon doesn't give you the right to be a monster."

"You're right, I'm sorry. Chucky just brought the worst out in me." Rai and Kimiko then hugged. "but speaking of which I should probably go and make sure he's gone."

"Rai... "Kimiko adopted a warning tone.

"I'm not going to hurt him but I won't let him stay here," Rai assured, "it's just that Chucky can't be trusted and we don't need anymore people we've got to worry about."

* * *

A priestess sat in front of shrine dedicated to her ancestor. Around her neck was the last relic that ancestor, passed down from generation to generation, passed on to her fifteen years ago. The necklace not only came with a history but also with a duty. Every day she would return to the shrine to reaffirm her promise. If fate deemed that she was to be the one to complete the mission, she would act without hesitation and when she was finished there would be one less demon in the world.

"Chiyoko?" A voice behind her said.

"Oh please, Takeo, feel free to barge in." Chiyoko said dryly, never taking her eyes off the shrine. "It's not like I'm busy honouring my ancestors or something."

"My apologies," Takeo bowed his head slightly, he hated interrupting Chiyoko's ritual but his news couldn't wait. "The elders have been reading the signs."

"As they have been for almost four months since the first sign appeared." Chiyoko closed her eye as she tried to regain her focus. "What has changed?"

"They have received a vision of the involvement and possible location of a wind demon in human form."

Chiyoko eyes snapped back open. "A wind demon in human form?"

"That's what I said, a strike team leaves at dawn check it out." Takeo replied, "think it's him?"

"I think I'd be a fool not to investigate," Chiyoko replied. "Get me on that strike team."

* * *

Rai leaned against wall starring out at the main training yard. He had finished a sweep of the temple and had not found a trace of Chucky. It seemed the dragon had taken the hint.

"And so the demon selflessly tried sacrificed a potential chance at humanity to save the fair maiden from a lifetime of fruitless searching." Clone-Rai paused for effect. "You have got to admit this would make a great opera."

"You do realise that most operas end in death, don't you?"

"OK, scratch the opera." Clone-Rai leaned against the wall. "Though you've got to admit, that girl knows how to surprise you. I mean who'd have thought Kimiko would be actively looking for a cure. Who knows maybe she would be the one to find." Clone-Rai quickly raised his hands in surrender when he saw the glare Rai was giving him. "I'm not saying it was wrong to stop try to her from throwing her life but you can't deny you're a little impressed. Chiyo had called it quits after day 57. Kimiko has almost doubled that time and is still going strong."

"Yeah," Rai agreed, "Then again, that girl's so stubborn she could be on her death bed and still going at it."

"Probably," Clone-Rai said with a nodded, "but don't you just love her for it?"

"That I do," Rai said wistfully before pausing. "Wait, you said 'Chiyo'. What happened to just calling her 'the priestess'?"

"Talking to Kimiko about what happened has brought you some peace on the matter." Clone-Rai, "Now you feel emotionally secure enough to remember her as person instead of just as an evil entity. It's a sign of growth and maturity."

"It's also a sign that I shouldn't have read that self help book," Rai said, "honestly is there any book I read that won't come back to bite me?"

"That depends," Clone-Rai said, "Are you ever going to stop reading books you know will come back to bite you?"

"Touché."

The two Rais leaned against the wall for moment of comfortable silence.

"Alright I've got to ask. Who are you supposed to be?" Rai asked. "Freaky eyes is definitely my demonic nature and short stuff represents my humanity. But what does that make you?"

"What do you think that makes me?"

"Oy! No doing that Zen throw the question back at the asker nonsense. Only people that actually exist are allowed."

"Ok fair call I guess." Rai-clone gave a small stretch. "Well no-one really knows why they exist but I think I'm here to play devil's advocate. Out of all of your hallucinations I'm built closest to you. That way when I'm giving a counter argument I do so on equal footing. I provide you with someone to bounce ideas off of."

"Well start bouncing." Rai started to pace. "Because right now I'm more confused than ever. I still don't know what the bad guys are planning. I've let that con dragon live despite it's going to come back to bite me. Freaky eyes is becoming a wuss, short stuff is becoming a badass, you're becoming philosophical and I'm becoming able to talk about my feelings." Rai grabbed Clone-Rai's shirt. "This world is scaring me and I don't know had to make it stop!" Clone-Rai slapped Rai across the face. "How are you hallucinations able to hurt me!!"

"That doesn't matter. What matters is that you have forgotten something very important."

"Really and what is that?" Rai asked.

"That you're a survivor. Look I'd be the last guy to say that you've lived a charmed life but despite everything that's happened and everything people have done to prevent it you are still breathing."

"I guess..." Rai replied.

"Like I said, you're a survivor. Always have been and so long as you want it; always will be. You put your mind to it you'll survive this." Clone-Rai started to walk off. "What you just have to decide is how you want to survive this...and who you want to survive with."

**And so we come to the end of Act II of this story. I hope you enjoyed it and that it, at least in part, made up for how long you had to wait to get it. Let me know what you think.**

**I would like to take this moment to make an announcement. At the end of April I will be leaving to going on two month tour of Europe. I'm really excited about it but unfortunately I will be on hiatus from writing while I'm away. That said I will come back and I will finish this story so don't worry, I haven't come this far to quit now. **

**Until next time.**


	23. Discusion

**Author's note Hi Everyone. It's great to be back in the writer's chair. Firstly, let me start by saying Europe was Awesome! Those of you that didn't get my note before I left that's where I've been and anytime that wasn't covered by the actual trip was me getting over jetlag, reconnecting with friends and family, moving back in my flat and all the other things that go into restarting your life after a long but amazing trip. To top it off my connection went on the fritz so it stopped me from posting last week.**

**Also before we get on to chapter, there is something that I need to say. Not too long ago a reviewer posted a review bringing up a valid point that I'm sure other readers may also have. **

**"**it's been three years since you started this story and guess what? you haven't gotten much as it pains me to say this, because I really do enjoy this story, you might as well give up and delete this story because it seems apparent that you've lost interest and soon your regular readers will to if they haven't already."

**I would like to say thank you to the reviewer for their honesty. It's not easy to say that, especially if it's to an author of a story that you like. I have also read enough stories that will never be finished that I understand the point the reviewer is making all too well. Seeing how slows my updates have been its easy to feel like I've given up on it. **

**However, in reply, I have to say this. The truth is that I had the basic story line mapped out from the start but what I wanted to do is take the time to flesh the story out and give characters a chance to develop instead of just trying to speed through the story. With that in mind, there is not a single part that I've regretted posting (even the ones that didn't move the story along were still a lot of fun). **

**There are also the matter in regarding to my living situation changing what with me graduating and getting a job but life happens and I don't think I'm a special case in that regards. That said I won't be deleting the story for two very important reasons. **

**1) Starting with this chapter we are now in the third and final act of the story. It's downhill from here as pieces are going to start falling in to place very quickly.**

**2) My ultimate goal is to be a writer so it is a matter of personal pride that every story that I start I see through to the end.**

**3) If I delete this story it would mean that the time I spent writing and posting chapters would have been a complete waste of time, not to mention the time readers would have waste on a story that wasn't finished.**

**I thank all the readers that are still with me, you will see the end of this story. While I'm sorry to the readers that have lost interest due to the time it has taken me to get this far, giving up on this story and deleting is not going to make them happy and it would be unfair to those that are still reading.**

**Well enough of that. Onto the chapter.**

Not far from Guan's temple were two familiar faces, staring on as they waited for night time to come.

"I don't understand why we have go to the retrieval work. Isn't that what minions are for." Wuya huffed.

Hannibal glared at the witch. "Well Wuya let's review how well your minions have fared. They failed to get the Rio Reverser, have made no real effort to get it back and if I hadn't intervened you and your minions would have failed in getting the treasure of the blind swordsman too."

"We would have gotten the treasure on our own." Wuya protested. "Besides what happened to keeping a low profil and keeping it subtle?"

"What happened was that time is running out and we still don't have the pieces we need." Hannibal said. "We have even less than I thought we did thanks to you and Chase utterly destroying and scattering the ashes of the one corpse we needed to reanimate."

"You're not going to let that one go are you?"

"This mean we have to get creative. But we can't do that without the right pieces."

"But why not take Jack."

"I can't find the whimpering idiot anywhere."

* * *

How are you feeling Mr Spicer?" The nurse asked.

"Fine," Jack said, "I'll feel even better when I back at that demon."

"Um excuse me," The nurse said. "Did you say demon?"

"Yeah I did, Rai is a wind demon that helps the losers at the Xiaolin temple find the mystical shen gong wu that are scattered around the world and one of the biggest jerks I have ever met on the Xiaolin side." Jack seemed to go off into his own rant. "I mean me and the monks had a good thing going, we race around the world for the Wu, me in my jet, them on their dragon, it worked. And then Rai shows up and not only does he smash my robots and threatens to decapitate me, he makes fun of me, lulls me into a false sense of security before hurting me even more. When I become ruler of the world, he will pay."

The nurse took a few tactical steps back and picked up a nearby phone. "I'm just going to ask a friend of mine to come visit. Would you be able to tell him the same thing you just told me?"

"Sure, why not."

Sometime later Jack found himself in a padded cell, wearing a straight-jacket.

"I did not see that coming."

* * *

"And even if I could find him, I need someone half capable to help me with this task, so quit whining." Hannibal paused. "And I thought I told you to bring Chameleon Bot thing along." At that, 'Wuya' morphed into Chameleon Bot. Hannibal glared at it. "I told you to stop doing that."

* * *

"So," Clone Rai said while Rai dug round the vault for the Wu he wanted. "Is me telling you what a potentially stupid idea this is going change your mind at all?"

"Nope." Rai pocketed the golden tiger claws, shroud of shadows and the falcon's eye.

"Well alright then."

Rai paused. "That's it? You're just going to give up this argument just like that?"

"Well to be honest, this can't really class as an argument." Clone Rai admitted. "You see, pretty soon you're going to realise a gaping hole in your plan so I'm just going to wait until you realise it and then I win this argument by default."

"Oh yeah, shows what you know," Rai said smugly. "I have this perfect figured out. We need to get an idea of what the Heylin side is planning. The best way to that is to go check out Jack's place and see if I can find anything. I'm going alone because I know Wuya and Hannibal best so I'm the most likely to be able to pull this off. I didn't tell anyone because they'll object. I also waited until dark because then it will provide better cover and make less people suspicious of me missing and I've packed enough Wu to be useful but not enough that Wuya or Hannibal may be able to sense it."

"So you've got everything figured out." Clone Rai stated. "No holes what so ever."

"Not one." At that Rai started to walk off.

"Hey Rai." Clone Rai inspected his nails. "Where does Jack live?"

Rai stopped as realisation hit and then pressed his head against a nearby wall in frustration. "You know, I would hate you if you weren't so good looking."

The Wudai warriors were sitting at a table enjoying a pot of freshly brewed tea as mulled over the strange day they had had.

"Well, considering how strange it can get around, I'd say that this is more or less on par with the status quo." Kimiko decide.

"Ya got a point there." Clay admitted, "Though I can't help but feel as if the day isn't quite over yet."

As if on cue Rai walked in, doing what appeared to be an innocent whistle. "Hey guys how's it going?" Omi his mouth to answer but Rai interrupted before he could get a word out. "Great to hear. Hey Omi, you know that guy who pesters us from time to time?" Rai asked. "Jack Spooner?"

"Jack Spicer?" Omi offered.

"Yeah that's the one, do you know how I would get to his place from here?"

Omi was about to answer when Kimiko covered his mouth to stop him. "Why do you need to know how to get to his place?"

"Oh nothing," Rai said a little too quickly, "just ideal curiosity."

Kimiko let go of Omi and casually walked up to Rai, "Oh well in that case." Kimiko grabbed Rai's nipples and twisted hard. "Tell the truth."

"Argh! Alright, alright," Rai spoke very quickly as the pain started to set in. "Wuya and Hannibal might be hiding out there." Rai covered his chest as soon Kimiko let go. "Girl, you need to learn where the line is. Even Wuya knew where there were boundaries."

"Wuya used magic to take away your free will and made you do her dirty work."

"Well yeah but she left my nipples alone."

"Could we stop talking about yer nipples and start talking about why ya think Wuya and Hannibal would be stashed at Jacks house?" Clay asked.

"Well you know how I said Jack had come to the temple with some fake Wu? Well I was feeling sorry for him so we had some tea and I got him talking. Turns out that he's currently playing errand boy to Wuya and Hannibal while their working on some massive plan. Well Jack also complained that Wuya was stealing all of the hot water. Meaning that they're staying at his place? Now that we have some actual proof instead of just making assumption it's time to take the initiative and get some answers."

"So your plan was to go to Jack's place, which you have reason to believe is currently housing Wuya, a witch that has a grudge against you, and Hannibal, a psychotic mastermind, by yourself, poke round for information and just hope for the best?" Kimiko asked.

"You know Kimiko, negativity is very counter productive, the best way to succeed in life is through proactive and goal orientated action."

Clay pinched the bridge of his nose. "Partner, I know you read that self help book out of boredom but could you please not make us suffer because of it."

"You know what Rai, you may actually have a point," Kimiko said, suddenly sounding thoughtful.

Rai did a double take. "Wait what?"

"It would be a good idea for us to check out what Hannibal and Wuya are up to. A good warrior knows to be proactive." Kimiko tapped her chin thoughtfully. "Although it would be stupid to leave the Wu unguarded."

"Yeah I guess so." Rai conceded

"Then it's settled." Kimiko clapped her hands. "Us Wudai Warriors will go check this out while you stay here and guard the Wu."

"Wait what? Oh no. You are not going to con me out of going."

"Yeah you're probably right though it was either con you into staying here or hurting you until you saw it my way." Kimiko nonchalantly cracked her knuckles. "I'm still open to suggestions."

"How about we take an option that involve me still being the one that goes to Jack's place and yet doesn't get hurt by you."

"I'm still open to **Good** suggestions."

* * *

Rai sat in the courtyard as he watched Kimiko and Omi fly off in the Silver Manta Ray. They had decided against taking Dojo purely on the fact that he may have been tempted to take a detour to go see Master Fung. "I still think it should be me going to Jack's place."

"Well better luck next time." Clay replied, sitting next Rai.

"So why are you staying behind?"

"To make sure that ya don't get any ideas of trying to follow them." Clay answered frankly. "It has been noticed that you don't always do what people tell you to."

"Yeah, I've always been bad like that." Rai pulled out his dagger and started cleaning dirt out from under his nails. "Well I guess all I can do is sit here and wait for news."

"Ya're being awfully mature about this." Clay couldn't suppress the surprise in his voice.

"Well, Kimiko got a confession out of me in one of the most degrading forms of physical torture ever and managed to sucker me into 'agreeing' to stay here while she goes to check it out." Rai shook his head. "Really, this doesn't seem to be my night so I'm just better off trying to protect what little dignity I have left."

"Come on Rai, it's nothing to be ashamed about. Being able to make men act like idiots is part of a women's job description." Clay patted Rai on the shoulder. "Besides, Kimiko just did it because she cares about ya, we all do."

"Yeah I care about you guy's too. That's why I wanted to go check it out by myself. That way I may have been able to get some answers and not risk anyone's necks."

"Yeah we figured that was what ya were going for. Appreciate the sentiment but next time save yerself some pain and just come clean." Clay said and, after seeing Rai absentmindedly nod, decided to move on to another topic. "What's story about that knife? Is it a keepsake from when you were human?"

"Nah I was too young to have any keepsakes from back then... This is a souvenir from I faced the former ruler of the land of nowhere. It used to be one of his fangs but he didn't need it anymore and since he had gone through the trouble of sticking it into my leg I figure he would have wanted me to have it." Rai then stopped when he realised that he had off handily revealed that he was once human. "Wow, I did not see that coming. Well played sir well played."

Clay shrugged, "It's not that hard, no-one seems to see it coming when I try subtlety."

"Yeah can't imagine why," Rai muttered sarcastically.

"What's that?"

"Nothing." Rai quickly amended. "So how'd you figure it out?"

"Didn't really figure it out." Clay replied. "It was more like a potential theory that I could deem as impossible. Plus you never said that you _hadn't_ once been human."

"True though I also had never said that I _wasn't _secretly a giant mutant chicken that likes to dress up as a person."

"Meh it's been done." Clay said. "So why the secrecy bout ya being a human? I mean I kinda guess when ya were Heylin it was better marketing to be considered a demon but now that yer a good guy why not come clean with us."

Rai paused for a moment. "Habit I guess, I'm so used to being hunted by the 'good guys' that I didn't want people to have another excuse to end my existence. And when I finally got over thinking that you guys would betray me someday I just didn't see the point in bringing up the past." He put his nife away after he was satisfied with how clean his nails were. "I can't change what I was but I can make the most of what I am now."

"And what are ya now?" Clay asked, "I mean ya look like a human, act like a human and has the same basic needs as a human. To top it all off of ya don't go all mutant Gator like Chase sometimes does. What exactly makes ya not-human?"

"Uh hello?" Rai pointed to his eyes.

"Oh come on Rai, don't pull that excuse. Having weird eyes does not stop you from being able to call yerself human. My Aunt Miriam's wonky left eye is proof of that."

"Well your Aunt probably didn't have people chasing after her the whole time going all 'Demon!Demon!Kill!Kill! on her butt."

"Nah, that all stopped when we were able to convince the Reverend that she wasn't possessed."

"Oh right."

"But that's not the point, just because some idiots jumped to conclusion about you were, doesn't mean that you aren't human. Humanity can only be decided on by looking at that thumper that people have in their rib cage."

Rai sat quietly for a moment before taking in a deep breath as he started to talk again. "Clay, I may look human, act human and in a lot of superficial ways I could be considered human but the truth is I'm not." Clay opened his mouth to protest but Rai raised a hand to silence him. "Look I can't really explain it but somewhere in the core of my being there is something just isn't human. I haven't been human for a very long time so it's should be easy to forget what it feels like to be human but I still remember enough to know that what I feel inside of me isn't human." A faint smile developed on his face. "But having people like you, someone who has seen the real me, still see me as human, it means a lot to me."

Clay shrugged but returned the smile. "Well whatever it is ya go in yer core, yer not gonna me that yer not human." He then stood up, satisfied that this particular conversation was over and that Rai wouldn't be able to catch up with Omi and Kimiko. "Well that's my dose of philosophy. I'm off to get a snack. Interested?"

"Nah, I think I'll go have a nap."

At that Clay and Rai went their separate ways for the time being. Unaware that off in the distance, Hannibal and Chameleon bot were watching them. "Perfect."

* * *

Clays was busy digging through the fridge in hopes of finding a tasty morsel. "Heya Clay!" Clay pulled his out see Rai standing there.

"Uh, what happened to going to take a nap?"

"Oh decided hang out with my very bestest friend Clay."

Clay paused, perplexed at Rai's sudden cheerfulness. "You've just eaten a bunch load of candy again, haven't you?"

"Nope," Rai replied cheerfully. "I just have a great love of life."

Clay stared for a moment but then shrugged as he returned to the fridge. 'Rai' meanwhile, developed an evil grin as his right hand morphed into a blade.

* * *

Rai sat himself at the foot of a statue of Dashi as he stared up at the sky, mulling over what Clay had said. "That's weird," Rai muttered, "usually I'd have a hallucination appearing about now to discuss this sort of thing with me."

"Discuss what with who?"

Rai tilted his head to the sound of the voice to see Clay standing there. "Oh, nothing." Rai paused, "Weren't you off to get some food?"

"Yeah I was but then I thought about something," Clay said. "What if we were to hide the Wu somewhere other than the vault? I mean that's where the Heylin side are always going to go looking so why not move them somewhere they won't expect?"

"So you just happened to come up with this idea in the space of time between now and when we had our conversation?"

"It's not like it's such a complicated idea." Clay answered. "But how's about we go do that now while the idea's still fresh."

"And if Kimiko and Omi don't like the idea?"

"Then we just put the Wu back, no harm no foul."

Rai looked at Clay sceptically but then shrugged. "Alright, I wasn't nodding off anyway." he stood up, giving Clay a quick one over. "I've been meaning to tell you, When you wear your hat like that, you kind of remind me of Chuck Norris." he said nonchalantly. "Except of course for the fact that you don't have facial hair and you're not a bed wetting girly-man."

"Uh...thanks?"

"Don't mention it." Rai replied. "So are we heading to the vault or what?"

Clay turned to head to the vault. He made about three steps before having to swing round and catch Rai's hand as Rai was about to stab him in the back. Clay then did a disarming move that took Rai's knife away from him and sent him flying over his shoulder. "Woah, what's got into you, partner, we're both on the same side here."

Rai spun in the air a couple of times before landing in a crouching position. "Word of advice, Hannibal, don't try to pass off as someone if you can't do it convincingly."

The Moby Morpher appeared out of nowhere on Hannibal's arms as he changed back to his normal form. "What gave it away?"

"The fact that you didn't maim me for bad mouthing Chuck Norris." Rai arched backwards to dodge Hannibal's incoming tentacle and then rolled into a handstand to dodge a downward strike. He then start to spin while he was still in a hand stand and hit Hannibal several times with a helicopter kick. Hannibal was finally sent flying into a wall. "Nice sneak attack," Rai complimented, "I almost didn't see it coming."

Hannibal let out a growl as he rubbed his jaw. Rai, not one to give the opponents time to regroup, came in to finish the fight quickly. Hannibal, however was ready this and started blocking and dodging Rai's attacks. Though Rai wasn't able to get a hit in, his reflexes meant that he was able to dodge Hannibal's counter attacks. That was until Hannibal caught Rai's foot and flung him upward.

Unfazed, Rai shouted "HEYLIN HURRICANE!" as he started to spin in the air. The spinning got faster and faster as a column of wind started to form around Rai, growing quickly as it headed straight for Hannibal. Hannibal did nothing for a moment as the tornado surrounded him. He then whipped his tentacles outwards, causing the tornado to vanish and Rai, no longer supported by his wind attack, to come falling back to the ground. Though he managed to land on his feet it also meant landing in front of a smug looking Hannibal.

"A hurricane's not that scary when you're standing in the eye."

Rai went bug eyed as Hannibal grew four extra pairs of tentacles. Rai tried to block the oncoming assault as best he could but soon he went skidding across the floor. He picked self up with a groan. "Great, not only did that hurt but now I feel kinda dirty too."

Hannibal let out a laugh. "I can't wait until I see the look of Wuya's face when she finds out that I managed to get rid of her rogue apprentice."

Just as Hannibal was about to strike again, something flew in and collided with his head. It turned out to be a robotic head that looked just like Rai's. "Didn't expect to see that today."

"Sorry I'm late," Clay said as he jumped in to join Rai's side. "I had a copy cat to deal with."

"How'd you know it wasn't me?" Rai asked.

"He complimented my hat."

"Wow you really do know me well." Rai said, "What am I thinking now?"

"That Hannibal deserves a hurting?"

"Right on."

At that the two warriors charged at the bean. Hannibal swung two tentacles straight at them, Rai jumped to dodge one tentacle while Clay caught the other. Not giving Hannibal time to react, Clay swung on the tentacle and hurled the bean skywards, helped a large part by the fact that Rai had landed behind Hannibal and given him a hard kick up the back side.

"Hey Clay!" Rai shouted. "Going up?"

Clay made a step out of his hands and as Rai jumped into them he flung Rai up as well. Rai flew up and grabbed onto Hannibal's tentacle.

"HEYLIN HURICANE!"

Rai start spinning like an airborne top and Hannibal, still attached, was helpless as he started spinning round as well. Meanwhile Clay ran to the other side of the court yard.

"WUDAI CRATER EARTH!"

Clay stamped his foot in the ground, causing to rise up as pillar until it was level with the spinning Rai. When Clay was satisfied with the height he morphed some earth into a giant baseball bat. "Come on Rai, let's see that pitching arm of yers."

Rai spun for a few more seconds before realising Hannibal. The possessed bean ended up flying straight for Clay. Clay took a big swing and hit his mark, sending Hannibal flying into the horizon with a loud crack. "It is out of there! Ladies and Gentlemen, that is what we in America call home run."

Rai and Clay returned to ground level, laughing triumphantly. "Oh yeah," Rai cheered, "earth and sky showing the bean how we do things." Their victory was interrupted by a cellphone ringing. Clay answered it by putting it on speaker phone.

"Guys, we're at Jacks place and it's empty." Kimiko said, "No Jack, no Wuya, no Bean and no Wu. We couldn't find anything except some mangle up bots so. We're coming back now."

Kimiko hung up while Clay and Rai stared each other.

"Chameleon Bot is one of Jack's toys." Clay said. "Meaning that Hannibal and Wuya were working with Jack."

"If that's the case, where is Wuya?"

"THE VAULT!" they cried in unison.

By the time Rai and Clay made it to the vault it was deserted, the only signs of entry being that a few draws were left open.

"Well at least we stopped Hannibal and the Chameleon bot." Rai said optimistically. "Two out of three ain't bad." Clay whacked him in the back of the head. "Yeah I deserved that."

* * *

Wuya stood there smirking as Hannibal returned to the agreed on meeting place. "Have fun?"

Hannibal glared at the witch. "Just tell you got what we came here for."

"Oh I did," Wuya held the bag of Wu she had stolen. "How about you?"

Hannibal held up Rai's dagger. "Now our plan can move forward again."


	24. Test

**Author's Note: Hi everyone. Ok I have a valid reason for this delay. I have gotten a promotion at work :D . While this is great I have also had to pull in extra hours to help with the transition period while I adjust to my new position and while they work on getting replacements for the job I left. But still it's a great opportunity and for the first time in since entering the workforce I'll be working normal person's hours so I am not complaining ^^**

**Now before we get on to the chapter I would like to say a couple of things. **

**Firstly, thanks to all who reviewed for your vote of confidence. It meant a lot to me and confirmed that I had made the right decision. With great readers and reviewers, like the ones I have been blessed with, how could I not want to see this story through to the end?**

**To the anonymous reviewer that called themselves 'Guitly as charged' thank you for a review that was frank but still constructive in its criticism. I'm only asking here because you didn't give me an account I could send a private message to, if you are reading this could you tell me a bit more specifically where in the story did what you said has happened to my story start to happen? I ask this because I have been trying to go over my older work see how I can reclaim any of the spark I may have lost over the time it has taken write this. **

**Secondly, I would like to tell you about a story a writer called Psycko has started. It is called 'Demon of Wind at Yokai Academy' and is a XS crossover story that combines my story with Rosario + Vampire. It is AU fic that looks at what would have happened if instead of accepting Master Fung's offer in Chapter 11, Rai had decided to go to Japan instead and was accepted at the Yokai Academy. I mention this story for two reasons:**

**1. So I can confirm that I did give permission to Psycko to write this story. He contacted me, seeking permission to use my character, before posting anything.**

**2. I like the idea of this story and from what I've seen in the opening chapter I think it shows a lot of promise so I'd encourage anyone interested to check it out. **

**Now that I've said my piece, on with the chapter.**

**

* * *

**

Rai dug through the armoury again, this time searching for a suitable dagger to replace the one Hannibal had stolen.

"You know Guan might start getting a little cranky if you keep raiding his supplies."

Rai turned his head to see Kimiko in the doorway. "Well you can't expect me to actually ask for stuff, that would just be degrading," Rai replied as he tested the weight of a dagger but then put it back when he was dissatisfied with it. "Besides if Guan really had problem he would have done something by now."

"What like strap you to a chair with rusty nails sticking out and cut of your thieving fingers off one at a time?"

Rai paused from checking out the daggers. "You really shouldn't hang out with me so much; you're starting to get my sense of humour."

Kimiko shrugged. "I still don't find disembowel..." Rai chuckled. "...funny so I think I'm safe." Kimiko paused as she watched Rai try a few more daggers, none of which seemed to fit some private standard. "I'm sorry about you losing your dagger."

Rai gave a shrug of his own. "Yeah, I liked that dagger but that's how life works. Enjoy the good things while you can because it won't last forever."

Kimiko found that a very strange philosophy to bring up considering they were just talking about a dagger. She was about to say something when he decided to change the topic on his own.

"So any thoughts on what the Heylin said is planning with what they gained from this raid?"

That deflection had been as subtle as a battle axe but Kimiko knew better than to call Rai up on it. "Honestly, I'm not sure." She had been wondering about since finding out what had been stolen. While they were missing some of the attack Wu like Thorn of the Thunderbolt, the only Wu worth noting that were taken was the Rio Reverser and the Emperor Scorpion. "As Wu thefts go, this one was minimal that means that they're planning something very specific. We knew they had been after Rio Reverser but why take the Emperor Scorpion as well?"

"A Wu that lets you control other Wu is always useful."

"Yeah but only if you have something Wu based that you need to control by remote, and they didn't take Heart of Jong, the Wu that combine to make Mala Mala Jong or even the Saphire Dragon."

Rai held the hilt of a dagger against his chin thoughtfully. "You know, I never understood the logic behind Sapphire Dragon. I mean sure the Heart of Jong had probably been tainted by some evil entity that caused it become the inherently evil thing that it is but seriously, did Dashi just wake up one morning and say 'hmm, you know what this world needs? Some dragon trying to turn it all into Sapphire'?"

"Focus Rai." Kimiko decided to change tactics. "What about the Rio Reverser? Any ideas what they may try to resurrect?"

"You mean out of the potential millions of great evil that have existed through the ages, many of which the side of good defeated through sheer luck and acts of desperation, does one name spring to mind? Oddly enough no."

"What about your dagger? Was that made from anyone worth bringing back?"

"It was made from the fang of Zhanchi Fenhui, the winged demon serpent that once ruled the land of nowhere. If you were evil, stupid and/or suicidal, that would be a pretty good way to raise maximum hell at minimum cost."

"So it was bad?"As Rai opened his mouth Kimiko raised her hand to pause him. "In five words or less."

"Yes it was."

"Ok then."

"That said even if that is who they intend resurrect, and I wouldn't put it past them, one fang turned dagger isn't enough source material." Rai explained. "The Rio Reverser isn't infinite in what it can do so at best you'd get a demon flip-flopping between being a winged death factory and being a dagger until the magic wore off, which wouldn't be that long either."

Kimiko paused again when a thought came to her. "Do you think the Rio Reverser would have been able to turn you back into a human since that was your original form."

"Why do you think Dashi created it?" Rai looked up Kimiko who stared at him. He let out a sigh. "Dashi created it so that he could force me back into my original form, which he thought would be my non human demonic form, so that he could find a way to defeat me. All it managed to do was hurt very much and for the following month my burps tasted like cinnamon for no reason."

Kimiko tilted her head at that and was trying think of reply when Omi walked in. "Oh Kimiko, there you are. Clay and I were looking for you. It's time for us to practise with our Wudai weapons."

Kimiko looked at Rai, trying to see if he was alright with that. Rai waved his hand dismissively. "It's fine. We can talk again later. You just run along and go play with your fancy new toys."

Kimiko raised an eyebrow. "Jealous?"

Rai let out a hollow laugh. "Kimiko, as flash as your new weapons are they are no match for sheer skill and lateral thinking."

"You right," Kimiko replied as she walked off. "In your position I'd be jealous too."

Kimiko and Omi left Rai as he rummaged through the daggers before he turned his head to the left. "I'm **not** jealous."

Clone Rai had appeared out no-where. "I didn't say anything."

* * *

The Wudai warriors were busy honing in their skills on a training dummy.

Or least, it had been a training dummy before it had come in contact with Omi's Shimo Staff, Clay's Big Bang Meteorang and finally Kimiko's Arrow Sparrows. As charred bits of the dummy rained down from the heavens, they were interrupting by someone clapping.

"Most impressive." Guan said once he finished clapping. "You have indeed mastered your Wudai Weapons."

The Wudai Warriors quickly fell into line. "Thank you Master Monk Guan," Omi said as they bowed.

Guan nodded approvingly before returning to the subject that he had come for. "Students, you have done well. You not only met my expectations but exceeded them. You are a tribute to your teachings and to your elements." Guan walked down the line, taking the time to look each Wudai warrior in the eye. Finally he stopped in front of the young hairless warrior. "Omi, as the future Dragon of water, you have not only shown skill and a desire to be great but also a desire to do what is right; even if it goes beyond what you have learned in the temple. You stand not by rules or conventions that you grew up with but by the very principles the Xiaolin way was founded on. Like a river runs its course, if you stay true to your friends, your teachings and yourself you will become the Dragon you were destined to be."

Omi bowed his head respectfully. "I will not fail you."

Guan turned his attention to the cowboy. "Clay, as the future Dragon of earth, you have shown strength and reliability. Like the mountain that this temple stands on you are great and unmovable yet at the same time supportive and possessing depth that people do not always realise, making you the foundation your team needs."

Clay rubbed the back of his neck. "Aw shucks, I just take care of my own."

Guan couldn't help but smile at Clay's modest dismissal. He finally arrived at the final Wudai warrior. "Kimiko, as the future dragon of fire, you never shy from a battle that needs to be fought. Courage, determination and an ability to be devastating to those who cross them have always been traits associated with fire but what is often forgotten is that for centuries fire has also been a source of warmth and comfort. The fire that burns in your heart has not only warmed those on your team but also cast light on a soul that has long since resigned itself to live in the shadows."

Kimiko, not sure what to say, bowed her head and muttered a quick thanks.

Guan returned to the centre and faced all three of them again. "I would have liked to have spent more time with you and get to know you better, hopefully there will be time for that in the future, but Master Fung feels that it is time for you to return to the Xiaolin temple. However, for me to allow this there is one final test you will have to pass."

"Man," Clay complained. "I never liked pop quizzes."

"The test will be a trial of combat, to test your skills as warriors and your ability to work as a team, you will be up against a single opponent. Defeat him and you pass the test."

Omi raised his hand to ask a question. "And who shall be our opponent?"

"Who do you think?" The Wudai Warriors turned their heads to see Rai walking up to them, wearing his black Heylin robes again.

"Uh, Rai?" Clay asked, "Why are ya back in black?"

"When it comes to kicking Xiaolin butt, I'm a fan of the classics."

"You have got to be kidding us." Kimiko said in disbelief.

"Despite him switching sides, Rai's training and battle experience was founded on battling the forces of good. He knows how the Heylin side operates and how to take on the Xiaolin side. He knows how to be devious, ruthless and underhanded to get the job done."

Rai ended up standing next to Guan. "I also like long walks on the beach, romantic candle lit dinners and meaningful conversations."

"The best way for me to deem you ready for the trials that lay ahead is to see how you handle yourselves against an opponent that's dark, cruel, shady, rebellious and generally unstable."

A vein on Rai's forehead popped out slightly. "You sure you've got adjectives there? Guan old pal, because I think you left out demented, twisted and perverted."

"Those were implied."

"Oh right."

"Come on, three against one?" Kimiko demanded, "How is that fair?"

"Indeed," Omi agreed, "even if Rai can be at times be an ill puppy-dog of small stature, a fight like this would be dishonourable."

"Uh," Clay paused. "I'm gonna side with Kimiko on this just cause I have no idea what Omi just said."

Guan turned his attention to Rai. "It seems, they really don't want to fight you. What do you have to say to that?"

"I say Omi's head is big enough to have its own orbit, Clay's hat is stupid and Kimiko's shoes make her feet look fat."

Guan turned his attention back to the Wudai Warriors. "Any further objections?"

The Wudai Warriors went into attack positions and gave a unified, "No."

"I figured that would be the case. I'll watch from sidelines to declare a winner." Guan walked, somewhat hastily, away from Rai. "Try to keep the property damage minimal."

Rai went into an attack stance but then paused when he realised what Guan had just said. "Property damage?" He then stopped to see that, Clay had developed some rock gloves and boots, Kimiko had a fire ball in each hand and Omi had tendrils of water snaked round his arms. Realising that direct might not be the best approach, Rai decided to try something else. "Ok maybe I've started this exercise on the wrong foot. How about we backtrack a little bit and try to keep it civil. We take a couple of cleansing breathes and then at the count of three we start..."

"THREE!"

A cloud of dust surrounded Rai as the combined attacks seemed to hit their marks. When the dust settled, Rai was seen lying on the ground a few feet away from the wreckage. He jumped to his feet. "FOUL! I CALL FOUL! You can't cheat on a three count, that's my job!"

He then ducked as Omi came in with a jump kick. Omi then spun and leapt up and tried to round house kick Rai in face which Rai stopped by grabbing Omi's ankle. Before Omi could react, Rai swung him round and used him as a shield against Clay's incoming fist. Clay's momentary distraction from seeing his fist hit Omi in the gut instead of Rai was all Rai needed to send Clay flying with a boot to the face. Rai paused then picked Omi up like a ragdoll. "Hey man, sorry that was low, you ok?"

"Yes," Omi wheezed out. "Just a little winded."

Rai let out a sigh of relief. "Phew, for a moment I was worried". He then threw Omi at Kimiko, who was trying a sneak attack.

"Wudai Crater Earth!"

Clay, having recovered, stomped the ground. Rai jumped back, narrowly missing a giant spike that rose out of the earth. "Come on, Clay, show me some real power." Rai taunted. "Or are you chicken?"

Clay growled and stomped the ground even harder. This time it opened up. Rai easily dodged it and Omi narrow evaded it but Kimiko wasn't so lucky and fell down the large crack in the ground.

"CLAY!"

"Sorry Kimiko." Clay called.

"Clay," Omi scolded. "You must take more care where you are aiming."

"Yeah," Rai said in the distance. "Show 'em how it's done, chrome dome."

"Wudai Neptune Ice!"

Omi unleashed a barrage of icy spikes at Rai. Rai gave a yawn and peacefully fell onto his back, as if he had suddenly decided to do some cloud watching, while the spikes harmlessly flew over him.

Dojo, oblivious to what was going on, slithered into the training ground. "Hey have any of you seen my Master Fung doll?" The spikes narrowly missed him and created his outline in the wall behind him. "I'll come back later."

When Omi's attack was finished, Rai sat up. "When you're ready to get serious, let me know."

Omi started to steam.

"WUDAI NEPTUNE WATER!"

A giant stream of water shot of Omi's hands and headed straight for Rai. Rai quickly got up and started to run for it but the stream of water followed Rai where ever he went. He ran all round the training grounds. "Hold it right there, varmint." Rai stopped right in front of Clay who was holding his hand out stop him. "Ya gone made me mad."

As Rai side stepped, the stream of water shot past him and right into Clay. "Yeah I kinda have that affect on people."

Kimiko, having finally climbed out of the hole Clay had created, leapt up into the air.

"Wudai Mars Fire!"

Kimiko started raining fire balls down upon everything below her, hoping to hit Rai if she had a wide enough scattershot. The fire balls seemed to hit everything in the training yard, Omi and Clay included, Except Rai, who was standing perfectly still, enjoying the show.

"Pretty. Ok now I'm bored. Wind!" Rai created an upwards gust of wind, sending Kimiko up a lot higher than what she had planned.

"Whooooa!" Kimiko shouted as she flew upwards.

After putting each other out and Omi using a wide spray of water to put out all of the fires, Clay and Omi stood together ready to recommence the battle. "Rai, enough games," Omi said. "I will not allow you to make us look like fools."

Rai smirked. "If I aimed this right I'll make you look like fools on last time. Right...about...now." Kimiko crashed right on top of Clay and Omi. "You guys might just want to regroup before we continue so I'm off to get myself a soda."

The warriors picked themselves up. "Rai is just toying with us and you two are making us look like idiots." Omi said.

"Hey don't look at me," Kimiko retorted. "I spent most of my time digging myself out of the hole, thanks a lot for that Clay."

"Sure thing Kimiko, and thank ya for trying to set the whole frigging temple on fire," Clay shot back. "But at least it dried me off from Omi forgetting who he was meant to be aiming at."

"It's your own fault for not getting out of the way quick enough," Omi argued. "Why you did not use some of that speed you showed when you used me as a punching sack.

The three monks continued to bicker until realisation dawned on Kimiko face. "Wait! Don't you see? This is how Rai is able to win against being outnumbered. He is playing us against each other, changing our superior numbers from being an advantage to a disadvantage."

Clay and Omi stared until realisation hit them as well. "Well hogtie me and call me Betty if that's not impressive."

"Perhaps at a later time, Clay." Omi beat his fist into his palm. "but for now let us show Rai how Xiaolin Dragons deal with obnoxious demons."

* * *

Rai walked back into the training grounds, soda in hand, to find that it was deserted. He stopped and checked his surroundings as he opened the can. "Are you guy ready to start again or can I just finish this?" He lifted his hand, intending to drink when he realised that his entire hand had been turned into a block of ice. "Oh yeah, real mature."

At that, the warrior leapt out from their hiding places. Rai dodge Clay's fist but had to physically block Omi's jab, leaving him open for Kimiko to him straight in the small of the back. Rai went down but pulled of a one handed cartwheel to dodge three simultaneous foot stomps.

Once out of immediate danger, Rai smashed his hand into the ground to break the ice. He then clutched it in pain. "Bad idea, bad idea."

Kimiko then started throwing fireballs at Rai but this time with a lot more control, meaning the Rai had to actually run to dodge them. Using his speed he was able to stay ahead, until the ground he was running on turned to ice and lost control, heading straight for Omi who was waiting for him. Omi jumped up and performed a flying round house kick. Rai flew back the same way he had come in and landed with a hard crash.

Rai slowly got to his feet. "Kid, the ice trick's not funny anymore." Rai then realised hes suddenly standing right between Omi and Kimiko. "Neither's that."

"Wudai Mars Fire!"

"Wudai Neptune Water!"

Rai leapt out of the line of fire of the two attack but when they collided the whole training ground was filled with steam that, despite cooling, lingered as a visibility reducing mist. Rai cursed when he realised that had been the Wudai Warriors plan from the start, turned around a couple to times, trying to guess where the Xiaolin monks were but gave up on that very quickly.

"Heylin Thunderclap!"

Rai clapped his hands together, sending wind in all directions. The mist vanished, revealing Clay standing right in front of him.

"Peek-a-boo."

Clay's fist then sent Rai flying into a nearby wall.

Rai shook his head couple of times to try and get the marbles back in the right places. He then picked himself up as the Dragons stood in attack positions. "Alright, let's see you handle this. Heylin Hurricane!" Rai started to spin rapidly until he was a small tornado, heading straight for the Dragons.

Omi and Kimiko jumped on Clay's shoulders and then, holding each other's hand, stretched out to form that they ended looking like a big Y.

"Dragon Kumai Formation!"

They glowed for moment before Kimiko and Omi jumped down, grabbed Clay's hands and the three started spinning like a giant top. The two spinning attacks speed straight towards each other. When the two collided with a large bang, Rai was sent flying, over the walls of the temple.

The Wudai Warriors stopped spinning took a moment recompose themselves. "Hey, where'd Rai go?" Kimiko asked.

"I think that last attack knocked him right out of the temple," Clay answered.

"So does that mean we are victorious?" Omi asked.

"I reckon so."

The warriors let it sink in. "Whoohoo!"

The Wudai Warriors starting doing a victory dance. It went on until Omi paused and realised something. "Can Rai fly?"

Realisation hit Clay and Kimiko like a brick and they all raced to the wall Rai had been sent flying over. They scaled the wall using their training and looked over, seeimh nothing but steep mountainous terrain below. Just as they were really starting to worry, they heard someone clearing their throat. They turned and saw Guan standing there, holding an only semi-conscious Rai by one leg.

"Well fought, young warriors." Guan praised before turning his attentions to the dazed demon. "So Rai, did you want to keep going or just concede the victory?"

"Only if mine comes with extra syrup, Mr. Panda"

* * *

"Come on come on," Dojo said impatiently. "Let's get out of here already."

"Hold yer horses Dojo," Clay told him. "Master Fung's not going anywhere."

"That's what they said about my last master. Then he went somewhere."

Rai shook his head as he returned to his conversation with Kimiko. "All I'm saying as that no will really miss the gecko so why don't we make him have an accident and thus cut the whining this team has put up with by 80%"

Kimiko finished making sure all the Wu were sercure. "Rai." She turned and cupped the side Rai's face. "Have I ever told you how much I love listening to you contemplating Dojo's murder?"

Rai, slightly distracted by Kimiko's hand, paused. "I don't think you have."

"Well in that case..." Rai doubled over as Kimiko's other hand connected with his gut. "Cut it out!"

Rai picked himself up as Kimiko walked off. "And so the conversation once more ends in violence. Honestly, why do I put up with that woman's antics?"

"I believe scientists are calling it the Y-Chromosome now a days."

Rai recomposed himself as he faced Guan. "So this where we part ways?"

"It is," Guan bowed. "I am thankful for the chance to get to know you better. It feels good to be able to end our feud."

"It was never a feud," Rai replied as held out his hand. "Just business."

Guan smiled and took it. He then pulled Rai closer and whispered into his ear. "Rai, you have been a fine student and great addition to the Xiaolin side. Your friends will guide you further as you walk this path but as your teacher I have one last thing to tell you. No matter what you have been told, no matter what you have believed, know that I have sensed something in you that no other demon I have encountered has;** a soul**." Rai's eyes widened. Guan pulled back and bowed to Rai once more. "Take care."

Rai bowed in return. "You too." Rai then hopped onto Dojo.

Only after they were up in the air did Kimiko turn back to Rai. "So what did Guan talk to you about?"

Rai looked into Kimiko's eyes for a moment before shaking his head and deciding to stare out to the horizon.

"Nothing important."

* * *

Guan watched as Dojo flew off into the horizons. After taking a moment to reflect he turned and headed to his tea room. It didn't surprise him to see an old woman sitting there, helping herself to a pot of tea that Master Chu had prepared. Meanwhile her kitten was busy lapping up cream from a saucer on the floor. "I hope don't mind me starting without you." She said. "I wasn't sure how long you might be with your goodbyes." Guan didn't reply but just sat down and poured himself some tea. "So how are they looking?"

"Optimistic despite the uncertainty," Guan answered.

"That's good." The old lady then noticed the shift in Guan's mood. "But not good enough I take it?"

Guan didn't answer but instead filled his cup and started to drink his tea. Though he usually hid it well, in his eyes shone the burden having lived through so many generations. "Optimism alone is not going to be enough."

The old lady gave her a head a brief disapproving shake. "You know as well as I do that you can't to do anymore to help them than you already have. When you chose to become an immortal you forfeited your right to affect the world directly." The old lady took a sip for her tea. "Accept it and move on."

"Easy for you to say," Guan replied, "It's not your master's legacy at peril."

"Your right it isn't," A mild bitterness developed in her tone. "Also after a few millennia of watching good people suffer and not be able to truly act because of laws that are even ancient to yourself and the pain does dull slightly."

Guan grimaced slightly. "I apologise, that was out of place."

Old lady waved her hand dismissively. "It is your right to be loyal to Dashi and his teachings. He was a great man that saw beyond his own earthly mortality and instead of choosing to remain on this plane, created something greater; a legacy."

"The Xiaolin Dragons." Guan lifted his cup in a mock toast. "Divine enough to posses powers beyond the common man."

"Yet mortal enough to be free of the laws the immortals are." The old lady finished.

Guan sipped his tea and after a moment let out a faint sigh. "I have watched each generation of Xiaolin Dragons since the beginning. I don't need to see the future to know what's going to happen. The darkness will come and they will face it, giving everything they have to help give the world one more sunrise."

"True," The old woman agreed. "But there is someone this generation has on their side that none before it had."

The name didn't need to be said because they both knew who she was talking about.

"And what is your plan for him?"

"Plans are for schemers and dreamers," The old woman replied with a sly grin. "I am simply someone helping a wandering soul find his true destiny."

"But the real question is will he survive the experience?"

"If he has what it takes. Two more tests and then we'll know."

* * *

"Alright I know you might be upset," Chucky said. "But if we take the time to talk the through I'm sure we'll all come to a satisfactory conclusion."

Chucky had been cornered in a back street by Vald, Katnappe, Cyclops and a giant squirrel, none of whom looked happy to see him. "I'm going to use you as my new scratching post," Katnappe explained. "That seems pretty satisfactory."

"Um excuse me." The Heylin b-grade baddies turned their attention away from Chucky to see a man and woman who looked to be in their thirties standing there. They appeared to be wearing Ming warrior style battle armour except without helmets and covered in magic symbols. While the man carried a Dadao on his back the woman appeared to be unarmed. "Hello," the man continued. "My name is Takeo and this is Chiyoko. We represent a group called the 'Cleansers of the Earth' and were wondering if we could ask a few questions."

"Oh yes," Chiyoko muttered sarcastically, "While we're at why don't we also run a survey on the number people in their homes use dental floss."

"It doesn't hurt to be polite." Takeo scolded.

"No the way you do it definitely hurts."

"Why do you think we want to answer your questions?" Katnappe asked, ignoring they're private exchange. "And what's up with those stupid outfits?"

Chiyoko raised an eyebrow. "Are you really going to cast that stone?"

Katnappe turned back to her comrades, "any idea who they are?"

"I'm pretty sure I came across their name on the internet," Vlad answered. "They spend their time trying to rid the world of malevolent creatures."

"So they're good guys?" Katnappe asked.

"I think so."

"Let's kick their butt."

Vlad tied Chucky up as Katnappe and Cyclops started to close in.

"Let's split up to look for leads," Chiyoko said in a mock imitation of Takeo's voice. "We'll cover more ground that way. The chances of running into anything really dangerous are slim."

"Oh please," Takeo retorted, "Do you honestly think we'll need the whole team for this?"

"Well..." Chiyoko put a hand on her hip expectantly, "prove me wrong."

Takeo gave a confident smirk as he clapped his hands together. The symbols on the back of his glove glowed for a moment before suddenly his whole hands was wrapped in lightning. Even Cyclops paused as his small brain tried to process what was happening. "Huh?"

"Sanjizhan!"

The next thing Cyclops knew Takeo raced, leapt in the air and struck him in the jaw. Cyclops lifted into the air slightly before came crashing down.

Cyclops groaned as birds started to dance around his head. Katnappe meanwhile had decided to go in and attack Chiyoko. The feline felon came in with a claw to the face which Chiyoko dodged by ducking down. Chiyoko then came in with a leg sweep that Katnappe jumped over. When she landed, Katnappe came in with a round house kick aimed to the still crouching Chiyoko's face. Chiyoko blocked the kick with her left hand while placing the right on her abdomen.

"Kiyomeru!"

Chiyoko's right hand glowed brightly for a moment but then nothing more happened.

"Was that supposed to do something?" Katnappe asked mockingly.

"If you were demonic, yes." Chiyoko answered. "but since you're not, apparently, it's time for plan B."

Chiyoko grabbed Katnappe's outstretched leg with both hands and then swung full on into a nearby wall.

Chiyoko dusted off her hands Katnappe fell to the ground. "Well now maybe you're ready to answer some questions." She then realised that the only ones that had already run off were the two she and Takeo had just knocked out. "Crud."

"Well I guess we'll have to wait for these to wake up." When he felt something tugging on his pantleg Takeo looked down to see Chucky Choo.

"Hey there," Chucky kept his voice nice and oily. "I just wanted to say thanks to you for helping me back there."

"Sure thing," Takeo said. He had actually had cared either way about the dragon, they had interfered with purely in hopes of finding a lead about the target.

"And just to show my gratitude," Chucky continued. "I'm going to make you a great deal on some top of the line Shen Gong Wu."

That got Takeo's attention. "Shen Gong Wu? As in the mystical objects belonging to Grand Master Dashi, the very first Xiaolin Dragon?"

"Oh, a fan I see. Well let me tell you that all my products come with my personal guarantee..." Chucky promptly shut up when Takeo buried his blade in ground just an inch away from where Chucky was standing.

"As in the objects that rightfully belong to the Xiaolin temple." Takeo got down to one knee and started to stare daggers into Chucky's skull. "For you to be standing there trying to sell me Shen Gong Wu either makes you a con artist or a thief." Takeo pulled out his sword from the ground and held it against Chucky's throat. "And I really don't like either."

"Did...did I say Shen Gong Wu?" Chucky gulped nervously. "What I meant to say is Shen Gag Wu. They're great for parties and they look almost like the real thing."Takeo pressed the blade closer. "But they're not. I swear!"

"Takeo!" Chiyoko interjected. "As much as the pathetic worm deserves it, now is not the time for your games. We're on a mission so get whatever you plan to do with him over with so that we can get back to finding that wind demon."

Takeo stared at Chucky for a moment longer before pulling his sword away. "You're too pathetic to be worth my while." He then started to walk off.

Chucky rubbed his neck nervously until a light bulb went on in his head. "Say, this wind demon you're looking for wouldn't happen to like spending all his time in human form, would it?"

The Cleansers stopped. Chiyoko turned to face Chucky. "You know of such a demon?"

"I might," Chucky said in fake nonchalance as he pretended to find his claws more interesting. "For the right price."


	25. Wrath

**Author's Note: Hi Everyone. Happy new years to all. Hope the year of the Rabbit is hopping along nicely. **

Ow! Stupid bad pun stick...

**Okay first off Sorry for this delay. I didn't mean for it to take this long to post. There are two reasons why. I don't know if they're good reasons but here they are:**

**First. I work in retail meaning that simply put, November through to January is hell (and yet I still love Christmas with all my being, funny that).**

**Second. This is hands down one of the hardest chapters for me to get to the stage that I'm satisfied with. Some of these scenes I had been planning since the beginning and nothing I put to paper seemed to work. Then more and more stuff came to mind that I wanted to add while still ending at the same point. But now I've got to the point that enough is enough and it's time to you got something out of waiting this.**

**But enough of that, you don't want excuses you want a story so now without further ado lets start this new chapter.**

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**Now. I hope you enjoy it**

* * *

"Dojo, it is good to see you too." Master Fung said through strained patience. "Now would you please let go of my head."

"NO! I'M NEVER LETTING GO OF YOU AGAIN!"

The Wudai Warriors and Rai shook their heads slightly as they left Master Fung and Dojo to get reacquainted.

"Look I know you guys won't let me get rid of Dojo," Rai said as they entered the Wu vault. "but seriously, I'm starting to see why Dashi decided not to stick around."

Kimiko quirked an eyebrow as she packed away the Star Hanabi and the Two Ton Tunic. "You really think death is something he _decided_ to do?"

"Hey Guan pulled it off and he was just the apprentice." Rai returned the Changing Chop-sticks. "Besides I'm not assuming he died. He might just have gone to a higher plain of existence or ascended to a new state of being."

"Maybe." Clay packed away the Fist of Tebigong. "Though it's a still a head scratcher why Dashi didn't choose ta stay with da living."

"Well I can't say for sure." Rai admitted. "But I personally could list a few reasons."

"You mean you were never tempted by immortality?" Omi asked.

"Omi, immortality for me meant an eternity of serving Wuya." Rai sniffed as he finished putting his wu away. "I'd rather take my chances in the afterlife."

* * *

"So is this everything we need?"

"For the last time yes!" Hannibal groaned in frustration. "Honestly Wuya if I knew that you would be so whiney I never have brought you into this."

"Oh please, if you could do this without me you would have asked for my help in the first place." Wuya doubled checked the inventory. "It's almost time and I don't want this plan to fail because you forgot something."

Hannibal was about reply when the Ying-ying bird flew in with a message for his master. A wicked grin appeared on Hannibal's face.

"Uh...Wuya why don't finish preparing. I've got a little side project I want to take care of."

* * *

"Well that is what I'd call a meal." Kimiko said as he brought the last of the dishes to the basin. After they had finished unpacking, Rai and Wudai warriors had decided to have an early lunch.

Rai finished filling the basin with water and was going to start washing. "Yeah, Guan was a great cook but nothing beats home cooking." Rai paused when he realise Kimiko was staring at him. "What?"

"You just called the temple home." Kimiko stated.

"Did I? The dishwashing fumes must be getting to me."

Kimiko took a sideways glance to Rai's black outer robe that he had left on a chair. "You know, just because we're no longer at Guan's place doesn't mean you have to go back to wearing Heylin colours. I'm sure Master Fung would be happy to get you some training robes made if you asked."

"Yeah but I can think of a few people that wouldn't be too happy about me walking round dressed like one of their Wudai Warriors. Besides, I like being an individual just like everybody else."

Kimiko paused as she tried to process that.

"Hey Kimiko." Clay at that moment walked in. "The meeting is about to start."

"Meeting?"

"Yeah, after you gave us the heads up about what Chase had told you we let the temple know." Clay explained. "While we've been away the monks have been trying to read the signs and be on the lookout for any omens. The meeting is to discuss their findings. They want us present."

"So was that an 'everyone in this room' us or an 'everyone that's still fully human' us?" Rai asked.

"Yeah I checked that." Clay rubbed the back of his neck. "Look I can give ya the flowery diplomatic speech they gave me but the simple fact is they don't want ya there."

"Eh, figured as much," Rai replied. "And before we start hearing agitated Kimiko sounds I wouldn't want to be there anyway. You guys will fill me in ith the important bits so why listen to some old men take forever to make a point."

"Alright but that doesn't mean that I like it." Kimiko paused. "and I don't make agitated Kimiko sounds."

"We better going." Clay said, quickly changing the subject. "Since you're not coming could you finish the dishes?"

"Seriously, you're leaving me to do the dishes." Rai turned back to the sink. "Alright but know that with each dish I clean my plan for vengeance grows greater, a plan that so far involves rusty nails, a two-by-four and a rabid chipmunk."

"You know Rai, you really need to get some better material for your jokes." Clay informed him.

"Jokes, right..."

Clay and Kimiko started heading to the main hall. Once they were out of range, Clay put a comforting hand on Kimiko's shoulder. "Hey there, don't worry about it. Those monks don't know him the way we do. Rai knows we've got his back and that's all that matters."

"I know. It's just they seemed to like him at Guan's temple and here it's like we're still at stage one."

"Well at least they're no longer trying to get rid of him."

* * *

"Strange," Rai muttered to himself. "My leg hairs are doing that strange tingly thing they do when fate is being needlessly tempted."

Rai paused as he heard someone entering the room. He turned and saw Master Cai walk in. "Ah Master Cai, so good to see you again. So what half baked scheme have you and the other merry monks come up with to get rid of me since I've been gone? Blessed silver? Incantations? Sacred oil?"

Master Cai didn't answer straight away but when he did his tone was even and controlled. "I am through trying to force you to leave. I realise now that it would be futile to try."

"Well that took you long enough." Rai couldn't help but feel a little smug about Master Cai finally admitting defeat.

"All we can do is hope that you will realise that it would be best for everyone if you left."

"And here I thought we were making progress." Rai rubbed the bridge of his nose. "Look I know this is hard for you ancient types to grasp but I intend to use my powers for the greater good."

"Even the best intentions will go astray if the source is corrupt."

"So my powers are demonic. Just because the source isn't pure doesn't mean it can't do good." Rai argued. "I mean I'm like crude oil, don't get hung up on where it comes from, focus on what it can do for mankind."

"Yes let's look at what it can do," Master Cai answered. "It can pollute the air, destroys oceans when spilt, cause wars to obtain it and all it takes is a spark for everything to go up in flames."

"Ok maybe that metaphor failed."

"No I think it hit the nail on the head. You are a demon; you wield powers that are fuels by sources of darkness and destruction." Master Cai never lost his even tone. "No matter how much you want to be a part of the Xiaolin side it doesn't change the fact that some part of you that holds pure evil."

"Everyone has darkness," Rai answered. "The key is to control it."

"No, the key is to realise when the very presence of something is a danger to everything around it." Master Cai headed towards the door. "I just pray you realise this before someone gets hurt."

* * *

"So are you sure this will work?" Takeo asked.

"Positive," One of men in the cleanser attack team confirmed. "I can't guarantee that the positive energy inside the temple won't make it go haywire but if we can get the demon outside the temple this stasis field will cancel out all demonic powers."

"Alright Souta make sure to have it ready in case we have to engage the demon."

"So just how well can we trust this source of yours?"

"We made sure he was telling the truth."

* * *

"_THAT'S ALL I KNOW!" Chucky Cho shrieked as he was tied to a stick overhanging an open flame. "I SWEAR!"_

_

* * *

_"Don't you think you went a little too far?" Chiyoko asked.

"NO! That filthy creature deserved everything that happened to it. The world would be a better place without his kind around."

Takeo stomped off to the lead as Souta took Chiyoko slightly to the side. "I didn't know Takeo had a thing against dragons."

"Oh no, he likes dragons just fine." She explained. "It's con-men he hates."

"Alright we're here." Takeo declared. Up ahead stood the Xiaolin Temple. "Alright team listen up. We have reason to believe the demon is located here but until we have confirmation we are treating this as ally territory meaning we don't engage unless we discover the demon and get it out of the temple. Chiyoko and I will enter the temple to see what we're dealing with, the rest of you will stay out here and... NOBU! DISARM THAT CROSSBOW AT ONCE!

While Takeo had been giving orders, Nobu, a lanky 17 year-old with a blue streak through his hair and an over eager attitude had armed his crossbow.

"Come on, why are we wasting time like this?" Nobu checked the sight of his crossbow. "There's ten of us and one of him. You do the math."

"Nobu, did you enjoy your suspension?"

"Uh..no."

"THEN STAY OUT HERE OR ELSE I'LL PUT YOU BACK ON SUSPENSION!" Takeo then noticed how carelessly Nobu was holding the crossbow. "I SAID DISARMED THAT CROSSBOW."

"Alright, geez." Nobu fiddled with the crossbow trying to disarmed it. "Like I'm not careful." At that moment it went off and shot an arrow in a random direction. "Oops."

"It's okay." Souta said as he pulled the arrow out. "He hit my fake arm this time."

Takeo stopped to take a calming breath. "Stay out here and make sure the stasis field can be set up in case we need it. We have no idea what is going on in there and until we do we're playing it safe."

* * *

"...and that is why that this patterned of the mould that Master Long found warrants further investigation as to what information it may hold on the threat could be coming..."

Meanwhile Kimiko was finding it hard to stay awake. "And here I had felt bad about Rai being excluded." She stifled a yawn. "I never thought talk about a potential Armageddon could be so boring."

"Now now Kimiko, the simplest things may indeed be omens." Omi chided. "remember the sign of the bird of paradise had merely been an old woman singing badly. Perhaps the mould is in fact trying to tell us something."

"Yeah that you shouldn't leave bread out that long." Kimiko suppressed a groan.

"Where's Dojo?" Clay asked.

"He is standing guard while the meeting in case someone decides to attack us." Omi explained.

"Now hows an itty bitty Dojo meant to guard the temple by his lonesome."

"He said that he was working on something special."

* * *

Takeo and Chiyoko entered the Temple only to find it completely deserted. They were about to call out when an object flew at them. Takeo effortlessly caught it. "A potato?"

"That's right and there's plenty more where that came from!" They saw Dojo in some makeshift trenches with a homemade cannon and wearing what looked like a WWI military helmet. "This is the spud-launcher 9000 or as I like to call it the hard kiss good night."

"A foot-long dragon with a potato cannon." Chiyoko muttered. "I just had to say that out loud to realise how weird a sight this is."

"Fear not, noble dragon." Takeo strained to keep a straight face. "We come in peace."

Dojo paused. "You do?" The Cleansers nodded. "Thank goodness, I had already eaten the rest of the ammo." Dojo stepped out of the trenches. "So what did you want?"

"We're here to warn the temple about a possible threat that they may be unaware of." Takeo explained. "Is there a monk or someone we can talk to? It's kinda urgent."

"Hold on I'll check." Dojo pulled out a cellphone. "Hey Dojo here...No no we're not under attack...I know the meeting is still on but there's these two people here who say they're here to warn us about something...alright I'll let them know." Dojo closed his fone and put it away. "All right two of the Wudai warriors will be here shortly and you can give them your warning."

"Good." Chiyoko said, paying no heed to the wind as it blew gently against her back and into the temple.

* * *

The wind blew into the kitchen, carrying its message the form of an all to familiar scent and feeling.

The plate in Rai's hands shattered under his clenched grip.

The Cleansers had found him.

* * *

"So who do ya think is here?" Clay asked.

"Who cares so long as it gets us out that stupid meeting."

Kimiko and Clay stepped out to greet the visitors. Though they seemed dressed for combat the two didn't appear to act hostel. "Can we help you?"

"I hope so," The guy replied. "My name is Takeo and this is Chiyoko. We represent a group called the 'Cleansers of the Earth'."

Clay turned to Kimiko. "Ever hear of these guys?"

"I think so, just hold on a sec." Kimiko ran off and then returned with her laptop. " I found their webpage." Kimiko read through it. "Says here that the fight to cleanse the world of demons and other malevolent creatures while ensuring the safety of all humanity."

"Well that doesn't sound too bad." Clay paused. "Ya guys have a website?"

Takeo shrugged. "Our PR guy thought that it would be a good idea for us to have information about us available to the general public since our name sounds just a teensy bit genocidal."

"You have a PR guy?"

"As my colleague was trying to say..."Chiyoko interrupted. "Is that we had reports this temple was having demon problems."

"Demon problems?" Kimiko repeated. "I don't know who you talked to but the Hannibal thing was not our fault and we have the whole thing under control."

"We were referring to a wind demon."

"Wind demon?" Clay scratched his head. "Can't say we've had any issues with those. I mean the only wind demon I know is..."

At that moment lightning erupted at the ground in front of the Cleansers. When smoke settled Rai was standing between them and the Wudai warriors, Eye of Dashi in hand.

"First shot's a warning, I won't miss twice."

* * *

"This is taking too long." Nobu complained. "I'm going to go check it out."

"Takeo said to wait out here so that's what we'll do."

"Well for all we know that they could be captured. So I'm just going to go in and do some re-con." Nobu paused. "Now where did my crossbow go?"

* * *

Upon sensing the Cleansers Rai had grabbed the first weapon he could find. He hadn't taken the time put on his outer robe. He briefly glanced back at Kimiko and Clay. "Don't believe anything they've told you. I'd recognise their look and smell anywhere, they're Cleansers."

Kimiko quirked an eyebrow. "Uh, Rai, that's exactly what they told us."

"AND YOU'RE OK WITH THAT?"

"Look buddy what's da issue?" Clay asked. "They don't mean no harm, they're just here to check out...a...demon...problem..." At that moment it finally clicked. He also saw that Takeo had already pulled out his sword. "Whoa whoa whoa I think that there has been some kind of a mix up. Rai's not a problem at all."

"What Clay means is that Rai is a good guy." Kimiko explained.

"Mind telling him that." Takeo said testily.

Chiyoko stared at the demon. _Rai? Could it be that he actually kept that name. _

She quickly snapped out of it when Rai pointed the Eye of Dashi at them. "I won't let you take another home from me so this is your last chance. Leave now or fry."

"Rai buddy, I think ya might just need to chill a bit." Clay cautiously stepped forward. "Maybe we can just talk this thing over."

"Talk? The Cleansers don't talk, anything even slightly unnatural they just kill, decimate or destroy."

"You're the one who attacked first." Takeo countered.

"I'd rather attack first than die first."

"We don't want to fight." Chiyoko explained. "We heard there was a demon here that met the description of one we were looking for so we just came to investigate. We don't want to fight."

"Don't want to fight?" Rai asked mockingly. "That's a first."

Kimiko was taken aback by how aggressive Rai was acting. "Rai, I don't know what's going on but you need to stand down before someone gets hurt."

"Kimiko, you don't know the Cleanser like I do."

"You're right but that was 1500 years ago. This is now." Kimiko carefully closed the gap. "Rai if you want the world to accept you the way we do you have to show them that you're good. And that means knowing when to fight and knowing when to talk." She gently put a hand on his shoulder. "Please Rai, I'm not asking you to trust them, I'm asking you to trust us."

Unknown to both sides that's when a voice in Rai's head decided to speak up.

_Well Rai I'd say now's the time where you either put up or shut up._

Rai gave the Eye of Dashi to Kimiko. "Alright we'll talk."

Kimiko let out a breath in relief. Things were starting to look up.

Then she fell to her knees in pain when an arrow pierced her shoulder.

Takeo checked his surroundings and thought he saw a glimpse of someone in cleanser uniform on top of a wall but he was gone before Takcould see who.

Rai starred in shock at Kimiko and as her blood slid down the arrow, something snapped in Rai's mind.

"**GET OUT**!"

A burst of wind struck Takeo and Chiyoko, sending them flying out of the temple.

"Clay, help Kimiko." Rai started walking to the exit. "The Cleansers are mine."

Clay to one worried glance Rai before carrying Kimiko off to get help.

* * *

'Nobu' landed softly on the ground outside the temple and threw the crossbow away. He then used the Moby Morpher to change back into Hannibal Bean.

"Nothing like a little fuel to get the fire going."

* * *

Takeo and Chiyoko flipped in air so that they landed on their feet but they still had to skid to a stop. "Souta get that stasis field ready," Takeo ordered. "We've found the demon and he's turned hostile."

At that moment Rai stepped out of the temple. Wind whipped around him as his eyes burned with pure fury. "**You hurt her. You will pay.**"

"Now!" Souta's real hand glowed for a moment as all the runes he had placed around the field starting to glow as well. The wind around Rai instantly vanished but at moment he was to angry to care. He charged straight at the Cleansers.

When one cleanser went straight at Rai with a spear. Rai caught the spear just below the spearhead and in one fluid motion he broke the spearhead off with a chop before driving it into her thigh. Her cry of pain was joined by the sound of a sick snapped as Rai bent the arm of another Cleanser the wrong way.

As he twisted Rai dodged another attack and drove his elbow hard into the solar plexus of another cleanser.

Takeo charged straight at Rai.

"Sanjizhan!"

Takeo came at Rai with his lightning fists. Rai flipped over him, grabbing a lightning fist with one hand and placing another on Takeo's back. Rai then used his body as an conductor to send the energy of the attack back into Takeo's body.

When Takeo fell to the ground unconscious. Rai stood back up, panting slightly but ignoring all the pain despite the fact that is whole body was smoking slightly.

Chiyoko took the opportunity to charge in and before Rai react had her hands on his chest.

"Kiyomeru!"

Chiyoko's attack reacted to the Hu li jing fur in Rai's green shirt and the concealment spell Wuya had place on him. When both vanished in a bright light Chiyoko finally saw the markings carved into his chest.

_The marking! It's him!_

Rai took the moment's distraction to head butt her. As she fell to the ground in a daze, Rai pulled out his dagger, intent to even the score. He knelt and plunged his dagger downwards.

Then stopped.

The blade dangled inches away from Chiyoko's throat. Time seemed to freeze as all Rai remained aware of was his own heart beat and the realisation of the line he was about to cross.

Finally he stood up and dropped the knife as he stepped back. "I'm a demon not a monster." The remaining few Cleansers started to cautiously closing in. "If I surrender do you promise to leave the temple in peace?"

"Our battle is with you, not the temple." One of the remaining cleansers answered.

Rai dropped to his knees and held out his arms "Ok."

The cleanser then pulled out some shackles and was about to put them on when something flew in and knocked them out of his hands. The object turn out to be the big bang meteorang as it returned to Clay's hand, who was standing at the front steps of the temple.

"I don't know who ya think ya are," Clay said, "but if ya mess with Rai, ya mess with us."

"Indeed." Omi stood beside Clay, holding his Shim staff ready to attack. "So leave now or face a Xiaolin butt-kicking."

Takeo having recovered , was back on his feet in time to assess the situation "Pull back." Takeo ordered. "We can't win this fight."

"But we have a mission to complete." The cleanser protested.

"The demon has back up, we don't."

At that there were no further protests as the Cleansers recovered their injured comrades and made their retreat. Only Chiyoko looked back as they disappeared over the horizon.

When they were gone Clay and Omi went to check on Rai. "Ya OK?"

"Yeah," Rai looked up at Clay. "Is Kimiko...?"

"Master Fung is patching her up."

Rai nodded gratefully "Thanks."

Clay held out his hand and when Rai took it, help him to stand up. "Dat's what friends do."

As the three walked back into the temple they were faced by a row of monks, most of them armed.

"Young warriors, step away from that demon." Master Cai ordered. "He is no longer welcome here."

"What?"

"That demon's presence is a danger to this temple. Because of him we were attacked and the future dragon of fire was injured. If we must fear attack from our allies as well as our enemies the temple will not survive."

Clay and Omi tried to protest but they were interrupted by Rai. "They're right. It's my fault the cleansers came here. It's my fault they attacked."

"Rai..."

"Tell Kimiko, I'm sorry."

Rai then ran off before either of them could stop him.

* * *

"Do you think that the demon was perhaps controlling them?" One of the council asked.

The team of cleansers that had been sent to the temple had set up camp few miles away to tend to their injured. Once he was certain that was underway, Takeo took the opportunity to make contact with their council to bring them up to date with what had happened.

"I am not throwing out any possibilities," Takeo spoke into the communication mirror. "But in my opinion I doubt it." He took the silence as an invitation to explain. "The demon engaged us directly and the others only joined in later on. If he was controlling them wouldn't he have used them from the start? That combined with the fact that the young monks had almost successfully dissuaded him from violence at first seems to indicate an alliance between them."

"Indeed. Though that is perhaps more disconcerting. If the demon has allied himself with the temple then hunting him would involve direct conflict with the temple."

"Yes," another council member agreed. "And if the one that was injured was in fact one of the temples's chosen ones, any further conflict could lead to war and we can't afford to make the Xiaolin Temple our enemy."

"Agreed." The first member said before returning his attention back to Takeo. "Commander, return as soon as possible. Until a proper course of action has been decided upon this mission is to be considered null and void."

"Understood," Takeo replied. "we will return as soon as we can." With that the image on mirror vanished and Takeo was stuck looking at his own reflection. After a moment he went out to inform the team what the council had decided.

When Takeo finished giving out orders he found Chiyoko starring out in the direction of the temple, idly toying with her necklace "I know that look," he muttered "That look means that you're about to tell me something that I really don't want to hear."

"That was him."

"Of course it was," Takeo grumbled. "Out of all the demons in the world it had to be the one that almost drove a knife through your throat. Do you enjoy telling me things that will take a few more years off my life?"

"I have to go back."

"I'll take that as a yes."

"I have to finish this," Chiyoko explained. "This may be the only chance I have."

"The mission is has been called off."

"Yours has, mine hasn't." Chiyoko answered.

"And a heartfelt plea to just 'let it be' won't change your mind?" Takeo was only met with silence. "Yeah I guessed as much but you can't blame me for trying. At least answer me this. How sure are you that it's him?"

"I would stake my life on it."

"Yes that's exactly what you will be doing if you go back there." Takeo let out a cleansing breath. "I know I can't stop you and I know you won't let me come along but at least try not to get yourself killed over this."

"No promises." Was the last thing Chiyoko said before running off.

* * *

The Old lady and her tiger look out from atop of a mountain at the late afternoon sun and the winds gently surrounded her, telling her of what had happened.

"And so it begins."


	26. Eyes

**Author's note: Okay, I'm going to be honest. I don't know why it took me so long to get this chapter up. Most probable reasons include things like work and other recent changes in my life but I'll save us all sometime and not waste it on excuses and instead move on to the part worth caring about; the story.  
**

**But not before yet again saying a big thank you to all my readers and especially my reveiwers, you are all wonderful and I hope you still find this story worth it. :)  
**

"You are going to have to be careful." Master Fung said as he finished tying up the sling for Kimiko's arm. "You were lucky nothing vital was hit."

"Well I've just lost use of my right arm, that pretty vital." Kimiko then looked and saw Clay and Omi still standing there. "Care to tell me why you're here and not out there finding Rai?"

"I told them not to." Master Fung explained. "The omens have been deciphered and we have determined that the eclipse will happen soon."

"Soon? We had monks examining lunar patterns and bread mould and yet we can't get more specific than soon?"

"The Heylin Eclipse is an event that does not following the natural order of things." Master Fung explained. "Predicting its arrival was not as a simple as predicting a normal eclipse."

"So were they they able to predict anything else."

"Nothing concrete." Master Fung answered. "And without knowing what to expect we cannot risk having our forces divided out looking for Rai. When the Heylin eclipse has passed then we can search for him."

"Well I've got a better idea." Kimiko stood up. "You guys stay and watch the temple while I go and find Rai."

"Woah, hold up fire girl," Clay said. "You're not in tip top shape right now."

Exactly I'm no good in a fight right now but if something big is coming we will need all the help we can get." Kimiko explained. "Either I find Rai in time to help even the odds or the temple's defence doesn't suffer anymore than it already has."

"Look I know I should hate this plan on principle but Kimiko's got a point." Clay admitted. "Rai's not a Xiaolin Dragon but he's still got a mean right hook and right now he's the only extra firepower we're gonna get."

Master Fung paused for a moment. "Very well. Kimiko, take what Wu and supplies you need." He placed a comforting hand on Kimiko's good shoulder. "Trust your instincts and please be careful."

* * *

As night started to fall Rai had returned to the cave where Master Fung had offered to train Rai. This time however Rai hadn't lit a fire.

And this time Master Fung wouldn't be coming to take Rai back to the temple.

"And so we here back at the cave again." Clone Rai said. "Can't say that I'm happy to see this place again but hey what can you do?" He did a mock pause. "Oh yeah...you can cut the crap and go back to the freaking temple."

"Leave me alone." Rai muttered.

Clone Rai closed the distance between them. "Look I know I'm just here to voice the part you don't like listening to but for once just..."

"No you're not here at all." Rai interrupted. "None of you were ever real. You were just figments of my imagination that allowed me to be the crazy demon because pretending to be crazy meant I didn't have to face the truth." Rai held his head in his hands. "That I will either die alone or I take anyone I care about with me."

Clone Rai looked down and saw that his body was starting to disappear against his will. "So that's how its gonna be? You're just going to let misery sallow you whole and wait for death claim your sad hide?" Rai didn't acknowledge Clone Rai as he continued to disappear. "Fine, not like I can do anything to stop you." Clone Rai's body disappeared leaving only his head floating in place. "You know we weren't just figments of your imagination, we were the part of you that still had hope. But I guess you don't even have that anymore." At that Clone Rai vanished leaving the demon alone.

Truly alone.

* * *

By the time Master Fung had deemed Kimiko ready to leave, night had already fallen at the temple. After saying her goodbyes and loading up on any Wu she could afford to take, she was standing just outside the temple grounds without any Idea of where to start looking for Rai.

"Alright if I'm going to find Rai I'm going to have to think like Rai." Kimiko muttered to herself. She thought really hard for a moment and then chuckled "Disembowel is actually a funny sounding word." She then slapped herself. "That's thinking too much like Rai."

She looked at the horizon recognised one of the mountains; it had been the same mountain Rai had said he would be staying the night before he had accepted Master Fung's training.

_Well it's not like I have many more leads._

"Are you off to find Rai?"

Kimiko whipped round and saw Chiyoko standing there. Deciding not to take the chance Kimiko lit a fireball in her good hand. "What do you want?"

Chiyoko kept her hands up hope to show that she mean no harm as she walked up to Kimiko. "I come in peace. My name is Chiyoko and I'm here to help."

"I think you helped out enough today."

"I apologise for what happened, that had not been our intention." Chiyoko explained. "It was a misunderstanding that escalated."

"Well that's putting it mildly." Kimiko glared. "But trust me you haven't seen escalation yet."

"It wasn't our arrow that hit you." Chiyoko answered.

"So what you think that the Arrow fairy was just passing by and decided to be generous?"

"Now you are just being needlessly hostile." Chiyoko scolded. "I know you blame us for the arrow but half my team was seriously injured when Rai lost it so I suggest you can the prissy attitude and listen to what I have to say." When Kimiko didn't reply Chiyoko took the chance to continue. "Now I know you don't trust me but believe when I say that I have been waiting my whole life to meet Rai and I'm going to help him if it's the last thing I do.

"Help him? You don't even know him."

"I know more about him than you'd think." Chiyoko replied.

That seemed to annoy Kimiko even more. She closed the distance and got right into Chiyoko's face or as well as she could, considering that height difference. "Oh really, well then unless you want to see what I can do with just one hand, tell me one thing you know about Rai other than the fact he's a demon."

"He was human once."

That stopped Kimiko right in her tracks. Chiyoko took the opportunity and placed a hand on Kimiko's wound. Both the hand and the wound glowed a pale blue for a moment. Kimiko felt a strange coolness spreading through her whole arm. As the glow vanished so did the sensation but soon Kimiko realised that the pain was gone as well. She pulled her arm out of the sling to test it and found that it was completely healed.

"How did you...?"

"My powers can hurt demons but it can also heal humans," Chiyoko explained. "And with the right technique it can go beyond just the wounds of the flesh."

Kimiko ripped off the bandages and as she saw that the wound had completely vanished thoughts ran through her head. _Did that mean that she could...?_

"Your team tried to kill him, how can I trust you not to finish the job?"

"They were simply following the mission that was given to them but tonight I follow my own, one that my line has carried for generations." Chiyoko placed a hand on her heart and bowed her head respectfully. "So I beg you, one woman to another, please help me atone for a 1500 year old sin."

* * *

The old lady let out a sneeze. "Oh dear, it's always the way isn't?" She complained to her cat. "Whenever something potentially world changing is on the horizon I always seem to get the sniffles." She poured herself some herbal tea. "Well that's nothing my own personal blend can't fix." At that her cat meowed loudly at her. "Oh hush, Hu, it isn't time for our part yet. Just be patient and enjoy the show."

* * *

"RAI!" Kimiko called into the cave. There was no answer and she couldn't see any light but something in her seemed to tell that she had found the right place.

Kimiko lit a fire ball in her hand as she entered the cave. She continue to call out Rai's name until the light revealed Rai hunched over sitting motionless on a rock.

"Oh thank goodness you're alright." Kimiko took Rai's hand which he promptly yanked back.

"Leave me alone."

"Look Rai, now isn't the time for you to start the crazy routine again."

"Don't you get it? I'm a demon! My mere presence brings pain to those around me. I mean look at what happened to you. Just leave me here to die before anyone else gets hurt."

Kimiko stared at Rai for a moment before promptly punching him in the face.

"Oh build a bridge and get over it. You think you're so special that when anything goes wrong it's because you were there." Kimiko let out a huff. "Please, we've been getting hurt long before you were even in the picture. Clay's been possessed, I've been savaged by monkeys, we've all been turned into sapphire and Omi's probably almost ended the world more times by accident than the Heylin side has done on purpose." Kimiko ignored the look of shock on Rai's face. "I don't know what little world you've been living in but in the real world people get hurt regardless of whether or not a demon's there so either you man up, accept it and move on or I'm just going to leave you here."

Rai stood up and rubbed his jaw. "Kimiko…" Rai began. "Have I ever told you how much I love you using violence to get a point across?"

"No, I don't think you have."

"Then why do you keep doing it?" Rai exclaimed. "I swear I have faced beings from hell that scare me less than that right hook of yours." Rai then gave Kimiko a grateful half smirk. She gave one of her own back, she knew Rai would never say thank you for a fist to the face but she could tell that on some level he was grateful.

Realisation then hit "Wait, you took an arrow in that shoulder. How could you hit me?"

Kimiko bit her lip for a moment. "I'll tell you but you have to promise not to freak."

"After the day I've been having the only way I could freak out anymore is if you had brought one of those cleansers along with you."

Kimiko gaped at Rai for a moment. "Oh screw it. Come in Chiyoko."

"Thank you for being civil about this." Chiyoko bowed head.

After a bit of coercion they had managed to convince Rai to come out of the cave. Currently they were sitting around a fire in a clearing.

"Don't thank me yet." Rai replied. "Fixing Kimiko's wound doesn't fix things between us. It just means I won't break your arm in retaliation."

Chiyoko gave Kimiko a questioning glance. "Hey don't look at me," Kimiko replied. "We're taking your word that it hadn't been you guys that shot first. He's listening so talk."

"Very well." She briefly inhaled and prepared herself. "Look I know you and the Cleansers of the Earth don't have what you would call a peaceful history."

"Well what can I say? I'm a demon, you guys made it your sole purpose to destroy demons, and despite such a good basis for a working relationship you still manage to suck all the fun out of trying to end my existence."

"Then why did you keep the name Chiyo gave you?"

Rai did a double take. "How did you...?"

Chiyoko decided to make use of the momentum. "For centuries my family has held a secret mission, one that involves my ancestor Chiyo and a demon she had found in a cave."

Seeing the look of realisation in their eyes, Chiyoko knew that everyone present was up to date on Rai's side of the story.

"Chiyo searched everywhere she could think of to find a cure for the young demon but despite her desire she was still a novice and there was only so much she could do herself. Finally out of desperation she turned to her older sister, an extremely gifted priestess for help. After telling her the whole story the sister agreed to help in whatever way she could if Chiyo brought you to her."

"Chiyo, feeling like she had run out of options, agreed." Chiyoko let out a sad sigh. "She honestly didn't know that her sister would set an ambush for you."

Rai, not sure how to respond, shrugged.

Chiyoko continued "Chiyo never truly forgave for her sister for her actions but more importantly she never truly forgave herself. At first she sat in her room, refusing to eat or talk to anyone. She surely would have had wasted away if she hadn't been granted a vision, showing her future where one of her decedents would finally be able to end your curse. With this vision rekindling her hope she dedicated her life to finding a cure and to make sure that it would become a reality."

She gently lifted up her necklace. "On her death bed she created this Virtue. Having finally figured out what it would take to cure you, she passed it on to her daughter along with your story who in turn passed it on to her daughter and so it continued. I am the most recent member of my family to carry this duty." Chiyoko removed the necklace. "And tonight I will become the last one."

Chiyoko held out the Necklace expectantly to Rai who return raised his eyebrow. "So let me get this straight. You come out of the blue, claiming to be the descendant of Chiyo, the solution to my demonic problem in you hot little hands. Why does this deal seem too good to be true?"

"It is true," Chiyoko answered, "but not that good. Chiyo realised that the problem hadn't been the demon inside but the magic keeping it trapped."

"I'm starting to like this less and less."

"This Virtue is designed to strip your body of all magical influence," Chiyoko explained. "Without the spells you people placed on you, the demon inside you will most likely come back to life."

"Woah woah hold up." Kimiko interjected. "You want to bring the demon that possessed Rai back to life? How is that a good idea?"

"If Chiyo was right, it never truly died. It's been living in some limbo state within Rai's body, giving him power but unable to take control."

"And we want to give it a chance to take control?" Rai asked in disbelief.

"When takes control it will be normal demon possessing you meaning that all will take is an exorcism spell, something I am skilled in."

"Provided the demon give you time for a clear shot."

"I never said this would be easy but it is the only way." Chiyoko explained. "Look this has been carried by my family for 1500 years but as much as I wish I could say that this is a 100% fool-proof I can't. Only you can make the decision."

Rai stared at the necklace for a moment and then turned to Kimiko "Alright Kimiko I want you to be honest with me. How important is it to you that I become human again?"

Kimiko looked at Rai, saw the scars, the old wounds that being a demon had given him and despite didn't even hesitate with her answer. "Not enough to risk losing you completely."

A faint smile appeared on Rai's face. "I just needed to hear you say that." He turned back to Chiyoko. "Let's do this."

"So this is the location?" Hannibal said as he surveyed the surroundings. "I must say the scenery isn't particularly epic but there is a certain ambience here."

Wuya dropped the treasure of the blind swordsman and the other items that they needed "Really? We're in Chase's domain and you're worried about ambience? What is wrong with you."

"Now now Wuya," Hannibal reprimanded. "If things go right we will soon have enough power to rule the world. Try and take the time to enjoy yourself. Honestly, its stuff like this that makes it understandable that you spent 1500 years lock away in a puzzle box by Dashi."

"Whereas you spent 1500 years trapped in the Yin Yang world by a man **you** turned evil."

Hannibal was silent for a moment. "Just get everything ready." He snapped.

Chiyoko completed the circle. "This circle is connected to my consciousness." She explained as the line started to glow. "While I remain conscious nothing will get in or out."

"Did you bring some shackles along?" Rai asked

"I wanted to but Kimiko wouldn't let me." Chiyoko turned to Kimiko. "Now when Rai is possessed he will not be in control. You may be force to resort to violent means of restraining him."

Kimiko cracked her knuckles. "Right."

"I know he's your friend but now is not the time for restraint."

"Gotcha."

"Any pain he experiences will fade and this is for the best in the long run."

"Good to know."

Chiyoko looked at Kimiko is slight "You're not worried at all about hurting him are you?"

"Not at all."

"Alright then."

Rai looked at the necklace. "So I just put this on and all hell breaks loose."

"Well no," Chiyoko admitted, "You'll just be a giant meat finger puppet to an entity that's demonic, evil and probably a little cranky."

Rai paused. "I like you."

"Let's get this over with," Kimiko said. "This can't be any worse than the time you decided to spank every animal within the temple grounds"

"Or when you made me apologise to each one of them individually."

"You had to be taught a lesson."

Chiyoko just stared at them for a moment. Rai decided to break the silence. "Well I guess I'll see you on the other side." He paused. "Listen if something goes wrong, I want you to know, everything I went through, meeting you, Master Fung, the Wudai Warriors and most importantly you made it worth it." Rai cleared his throat. "But if it comes to it, please don't let me become what the rest of the world thought I was."

Kimiko swallowed. "Okay Rai."

Rai lifted the necklace up and was about to put it on. "Rai, wait!" he paused. "If Chiyo was the one that gave you the name Rai, what's your real name?"

Rai thought hard for a moment. "You know after all this time I honestly can't remember." He then gave her a smile and a wink. "But tell you what. If this works, I'll let you pick out a new one for me."

Rai took in a deep breath and put the necklace on. Blue light shone from the necklace and trickled down. When the blue light passed over the symbols on his chest and back the shown a golden glow before they all dissolved. Finally his whole body shone blue for a moment before it vanished. Rai waited for a moment before he let out his breath. "Well what happens ne..." He then fell to his hands and knees.

"Rai!" Kimiko was about to run to him but Chiyoko put an arm out stopping her. Rai lifted his head to reveal that his once jade coloured eyes had turned pure silver and the growl that came out of his throat told her that Rai was no longer the one in charge.

As he rose his head hung to one side while his shoulders and arms sagged down, as if he was couldn't quite remember how to use his body.

While taking care to keep her guard up, Chiyoko slowly approached Rai like you would a wild animal. She made about three steps before Rai turned and ran in the opposite direction. That plan worked well until he hit barrier Chiyoko had set up. He quickly picked himself up and started hitting the barrier, hoping to break through it with his bare hands.

"Doesn't he remember the barrier is there?" Kimiko asked.

"The level of possession varies from demon to demon." Chiyoko answered. "It seems this demon only has Rai's body and abilities but none of his memories."

"So he doesn't know you're the one keeping the barrier up."

At that Rai's head whipped round.

"He does now."

Without any further warning, Rai charged at them. He would gotten his hands around Chiyoko throat if Kimiko hadn't intercepted with a kick to the side, sending Rai flying across the circle and into barrier.

"Anytime you feel ready to get that demon out of Rai, let me know." Kimiko said testily.

"It's not that simple," Chiyoko explained. "To focus my chi through Rai I need to be in direct contact with him."

"And you're bringing that up now?"

"Whine all you like but I'm not the one who said to leave the chains behind."

Kimiko grit her teeth as she noticed Rai picking himself up. "Fine, just get your mojo ready while I make you an opening. HEY DEMON BREATH! OVER HERE!"

Rai growled and then charged in for another shot.

"Fire!" Kimiko stamped her foot on the ground, causing a wall of fire to appear. Rai shielded his eyes against bright light but when the wall sunk down, Kimiko and Chiyoko had vanished as well.

Kimiko then used the brief distraction to grab onto Rai from behind. He tried to shake her off but she held on for dear life. "Come Rai, this for your own good." She groaned.

Chiyoko took the opportunity to charge in both hands glowing "AKUMABARAI!"

When her hands connected with Rai's chest, every scar on his body burst open as both he and Kimiko were knocked back by the force.

Next thing she knew Kimiko was on the ground with a bloody and unconscious Rai on top of her. "Is he alright?" She got out from under him and lay him down gently.

Chiyoko placed a glowing hand on Rai's chest once more. Energy flowed all over Rai's body as his wounds healed completely, leaving what was filled with scars seemingly untouched... She then stood back up and bowed her head in prayer.

Kimiko still held her hand against Rai's cheek, marvelling at how warm he suddenly felt. At that moment Rai regained consciousness and Kimiko found herself starring in to a pair of emerald eyes.

Emerald _Human_ Eyes


	27. Farewell

**Author's Note: Hi everyone, Happy Easter! This is shorter than I usually do but to be frank I felt that it was a logical place to end this chapter. Don't worry I won't make a habit out of it.  
**

**But regardless, Enjoy ^^**

"Rai..." Kimiko began. Rai suddenly sat upright and started to scurry away from her, jabbering in a language she had never heard before. "Rai, what's wrong?"

Rai continued to speak in his strange language. Chiyoko cautiously approached "Rai, just stay calm down."

Rai stared for moment and when he spoke again it is slow and cautious as if he wasn't sure if the words would come out right.

"Who are you? Why can I understand you? Who is Rai?"

* * *

Hannibal turned to Wuya. "Begin."

Wayu pulled out the Glove of Jisaku and placed Rai's dagger on top of it.

"Glove of Jisaku!"

The glove and the dagger glowed the same light as the magnet parts appeared. Wuya placed the still glowing glove on the ground as slowly specific pieces of dust and ash start flying towards it, steadily becoming a bigger pile.

Hannibal chuckled to himself. "Soon."

* * *

Kimiko stared blankly at Rai for a moment. "Listen would you excuse us for one moment."

Next thing Chiyoko knew she was being pinned against a tree by a less than pleased Kimiko.

"Alright lady," Kimiko said. "Start talking or I start hitting."

"Listen Kimiko, I really don't think you should be hosti..." She was silenced by Kimiko's fist connecting with her gut.

"I won't ask twice."

Chiyoko managed to wheeze out an answer out an answer. "Look, you might not have noticed it but Rai carried that demon inside in for quite a while. Dormant or not that's still a chunk of his existence that's effectively been ripped out." Kimiko raised her fist again causing Chiyoko to talk even quicker. "This isn't permanent! The change to his body was instantaneous but his mind and spirit needs time to catch up."

Kimiko pulled back her fist. "Alight, so all we have to do is keep Rai calm and contained while we wait for that to happen." Kimiko then turned to where Rai had been only to see that he had already run off. "Right after we find him."

* * *

Rai through the forest, not sure where he was or where he was going but certain that he had seen blood on one of those strange women's clothing and when he heard them hit each other he knew that it was time for him to get out of there.

Where was he?

Where was home?

And why didn't he see root until it tripped him up?

As Rai fell he did something that involved a roll and a skid and somehow resulted in him on his back staring up at the night sky. Despite having just a moment been running for dear life he found himself calm down as he stared at the stars

Slowly memories starting creep on of nights spent looking for that one star. Of a lying in this very position as the raft he had been left on floated further and further away from his home into the unknown.

While he lay there, continuing to stare up at the night sky, his memories started to return.

* * *

The old lady sat quietly with her cat as she listened to what the wind had to tell her.

"Well Hu," she said her cat. "I could be mistaken but I think things are going to start getting ineresting very soon." She gave a her cat a quick scratch behin the ear. "Don't disapoint me Rai."

* * *

When Rai finally sat up again, most of the stars had disappeared as the forest started to light up with the whisper of dawn on the horizon.

He stood up and started to dust himself off. His memory had returned. He was Rai, those two women he had run away from had been Kimiko & Chiyoko and not too long ago he had agreed to a spell that could potentially make him human again.

Had it worked?

"Well look who finally returned to the party." Rai turned to see Clone Rai standing there with a couple of suitcases. "Sorry for the delay in seeing the new you but we had to pack and you won't believe the amount of baggage there was to sort through." Clone Rai then paused for a moment before he threw his suitcases away. "Like we actually need suitcases where we're headed."

"Where are we headed?" Rai asked.

"You're not heading anywhere." Clone Rai answered. "The rest of us on the other hand..."

"Is it time to go?" Little Rai appeared beside Rai.

"Almost," Clone Rai answered. "I just figured that the boss deserved a decent goodbye."

"Goodbye?" Rai did a double take. "You guys are leaving?"

"You're free." Little Rai answered, making no effort to hide the joy in his voice. "We've served our purpose and now it's time to move on."

"Move on? You're creations of my mind." Rai stated. "How can you just move on?"

"Well to tell you the truth I don't know how this is going to work." Clone Rai answered. "Once this conversation is over, we go bye-bye somehow. I can't say we will just move on to a higher plain of thought, whether we'll be reborn as a new part of your mind or whether we'll just stop existing. I guess that's just part of the fun."

"So what I'm human now so all my problems have suddenly disappeared?" Rai couldn't believe this.

"Oh hell no, you've still got enough issues to sort out." Clone Rai answered. "You'll have to come to grips with stuff like having to fit back into society. That morbid eccentricity of yours was comedic as a demon but as a human it will just be plain psychotic. But that's for you sort out."

Before Rai could answer Little Rai jumped into his arms. "There is a world full people that will help you." He explained. "You don't need us anymore."

Rai sighed as he gave little Rai once last hug. "Doesn't mean I won't miss you. Goodbye."

Little Rai jumped back down, gave one last wave and started skipping away while he slowly dissolved into nothing.

A pair of silver eyes appeared on Rai's shadow. The shadow then rose up became a three dimensional entity. He then stood beside Rai and glared at him for a few moments. "So long jerkwad." He started to walk away.

"Wait!" The shadow stopped and turn back as Rai called it. "Look, you were a part of me I never liked and frankly I'm glad to see you go..."Rai swallowed." ...but when things got really bad I forgot who I was you were what helped keep me alive long enough to remember what was important. So thank you for that."

The shadow bowed his head slightly and started to leave, slowly dissolving into nothing.

"Well." Clone Rai shook Rai's hand. "It's been one heck of a ride." He loosened his grip and was about to leave but Rai didn't let go.

"So that's it?" Rai asked in disbelief. "No final closing number? Just an imaginary hand shake and a walk away. Aren't you at least going make some effort?"

Clone Rai got out of Rai's grip and stared at him bemused. "Are you sure? Wouldn't it be better to play it low key and not ruin the moment?"

"Since when has low key been our style?"

A cheeky grin appeared of Clone Rai's face. He did a quick turn on the spot, his clothes morphed into a tuxedo. As he caught a microphone that flew in out of nowhere, he was suddenly under a spotlight as the forest filled with the music.

"**For what is a man what has he got**

**If not himself then he has not**

**To say the things he truly feels**

**And not the words of one who kneels**

**The record shows I took the blows**

**And did it my way"**

As the music built to a climax and the spotlight started to dim, Clone Rai slowly started to dissolve as well until only his voice remained.

"**Yes it was my way**."

Rai clapped until the forest was yet again completely silent.

* * *

"Hear that?" Kimiko said

"Is someone clapping?" Chiyoko asked.

"Come on this way."

* * *

After Rai finished his standing ovation he noticed a clearing nearby that was already being filled with the morning sun.

Despite how inviting the sun filled looked, Rai still remained in the shadows. The necklace around Rai's neck glowed once as a ball of silver light. It grew and changed until standing in front of Rai, still bathed in silver light, was someone he hadn't seen in a long time.

"Chiyo." Rai whispered in disbelief

Chiyo smiled kindly at him. "Hello Rai. It is good to see you again."

"Um...Yeah...it's good to see you too." Rai stammered slightly. "Listen don't take this the wrong way but are you actually here? Cause I don't remember hallucinating about you before." Chiyo just gave him a faint smile. "But that would be making things too easy for me wouldn't it?"

"I finally kept my promise," Chiyo answered. "Sorry it took so long."

"Hey you know what they say, better late than never." Rai gave a nervous chuckle at his own joke. "So this real, isn't it? I'm actually human again?"

Chiyo gestured towards the clearing. "There is one way to find out."

"I'm scared." Rai admitted. "What if being human is actually over rated and I was better off being a demon? How do I know that I'll even remember the fundamentals of being human?"

Chiyo calmly held out her arms. "Take me hands." Rai cautiously obeyed, marvelling at how real they felt. "Rai, this is the real you. Being human isn't something you forget." Chiyo gently pulled, coaxing Rai forward. "It's about taking that first step and hoping for the best."

At that Rai stepped forward into the sun light. As the light fell on him he felt the suns warmth for the first time in a long time.

And it felt wonderful.

* * *

Kimiko and Chiyoko arrived to see Rai standing alone in the clearing, basking in the sunlight.

"Rai?" Kimiko asked cautiously. As he turned to the sound of her voice she saw that tears were streaming down face.

"This is real." Rai said with an awe- filled voice. He raced over to Kimiko and pulled her into a hug. "I'm human."

A single tear of joy fell down fell down her cheek. "Yes you are Rai. Welcome to the club."

* * *

Wuya and Hannibal stared at the large pile that had gathered around the Glove of Jisaku. "I think that about does it." Hannibal chuckled as he saw the faint beginings of what he had been waiting for. "Time for the next phase."

Wuya pulled out the Rio Reverser while Hannibal floated the treasure of the blind swordsman over.

The chest open and out rose the spirit of the blind swordsman. "What is your bidding Master?"

"Would you be so kind as to lend the Rio Reverser some of your power?"

The swordsman nodded briefly before he touched the Rio Reverser with his sword. It glowed brightly as Wuya placed the empowered Wu into the pile. The pile started to glow as well as it morphed and twist.

* * *

Omi trained in the courtyard. He was busy with light exercises that helped him to stay focused and alert. He stopped when he saw Clay walk in with Dojo on his shoulder. "Any word from Kimiko?" Omi asked.

"Not a peep but don't worry." Clay assured. "That fire girl knows how to take care of her self."

"I think we've got other problems." Dojo suddenly said. "Look!"

Clay and Omi looked where Dojo was pointing and suppressed a gasp. It had barely started but there was no denying it.

The Heylin Eclipse wasn't just happening soon.

It was happening today.

* * *

Slowly the finally changed into a gigantic demonic snake. It had blacks, red demonic eyes and it's whole body glowed a faint red with power.

Large black wings grew out of it's back as it rose up into the sky. Clouds appeared over the creature as thunder and lighting filled the air.

"I am Zhanchi Fenhui! Who dares enter my domain?"


	28. Resurection

**Author's note: Let me just say sorry for taking this long. I don't have an excuse other than the fact that after my 5 year anniversary challenge work and life picked up so that took a good chunk of my focus. Plus the upcoming chapters I have been planning since the beginning so I may be a little bit more retentive than usual to make sure that it came out the way I like it.**

**That said I will not deny that I do suffer from procrastination issues just like many others. I have sought help on that matter though.**

Bob: _(locking a door)_ Alright. You're not coming out of there until you get the next chapter finished and posted.

Author: You do realise that locking me in a room with my laptop and an internet connection isn't going to stop me from procrastinating.

Bob:...damn.

**But I'm back in the writing frame of mind now and the ball is rolling so the next few chapters will be coming out a lot quicker. In the mean time enjoy this chapter while I get to work on the next chapter and wait for Karma to pay me a visit for my delay. Possibly with rabid squirrels though they aren't native to New Zealand so I should be safe**

**.**

**.**

**.**

"How are you feeling?"Chiyoko asked Rai. "Any side effects from getting cured."

"None that I notice." Rai answered, "and I don't even have a scratch on me. Literally not one, you are **good**."

Chiyoko shrugged. "It's a gift."

"You know I'm so glad we were able to find you," Kimiko said absentmindedly. "Considering how fast you can run I was worried you would be halfway to Europe."

Rai paused before saying quietly. "Yeah that's not really to be going a problem anymore."

Kimiko stopped and stared at Rai before realisation hit like a sledgehammer. "Rai...I didn't mean..."

Rai stopped Kimiko's rambling by cupping her chin. "Hey, no frowny dragon face. This..." Rai, moved the hand to her cheek while he used the other hand to indicate all of himself, "...is a really, REALLY, good thing. No matter what happens. This is worth it."

Kimiko placed a hand over the one Rai had placed on her cheek and gave him a faint smile. "You're right."

Chiyoko took that moment to but in "So all you powers are gone?"

Knowing that whatever moment he and Kimiko were having was officially over, Rai turned to the priestess. "Well not everything is gone; otherwise I wouldn't understand a word you were saying but it's safe to say that anything being a wind demon is gone."

"Have you tested it?" Kimiko inquired.

"Don't have to. I can just sense the difference." Rai explained. "When I was a demon the air around me would feel like this entity that I could shape or direct. Now..." Rai testingly waved his hand through said air. "nothing."

"Well on the plus side you won't have people trying to kill you for being a demon anymore." Chiyoko said cheerfully.

"No now they'll only want me dead because of my charming personality." Rai then Kimiko staring him strangely. "What?"

"It's nothing really." Kimiko admitted. "It's just that ever since finding out that you were human once I was always wondering what your eyes looked like as a human."

"Oh," Rai said before striking as pose that looked as if he was putting himself up for display. "Well?"

Kimiko had a faint smile as she answered. "They suit you."

Chiyoko stood there watching this exchange. "I'm just gonna go call my team to let them know I'm alright." She quickly walked over to the other side of the clearing to give the two some privacy.

There was a moment of silence between the former demon and the Wudai Warrior. Kimiko was the one who broke. "I should...probably get our ride back ready."

While Kimiko slowly starting to walk to the centre of the clearing to summon the Silver Manta Ray Rai had a brief inner struggle until one side won.

"Umm...Kimiko," Kimiko stopped to see that Rai had become slightly nervous. "You know I still kinda suck at this whole talking like a civil human being...but now that I'm human I was kinda wondering if you would..."

Rai was cut off by Kimiko. "Has it suddenly become darker?" The two turned their gazes skyward to see that the Heylin Eclipse had begun.

Rai threw up his arms in dismay. "You just couldn't let me have my moment. Could you, universe?"

* * *

Zhanchi Fenhui stared down at Wuya and Hannibal. "You two dare enter my domain."

"Hate to break it to you, Zhanchi old pal." Hannibal said smugly. "But this is no longer your domain anymore. Though if you agree to work with us..."

"I am not your 'pal', insect." Zhanchi growled. "And what stops me from destroying you both where you stand?"

Wuya activated the Emperor Scorpion, Zhanchi's wings started turning back into dust until they were no longer able to hold his weight causing the demonic serpent to come falling to the ground. "_This_, for one thing." She replied smugly.

When the Emperor Scorpion deactivated, the snake's wings started to grow back while Hannibal jumped onto its nose.

"Do we understand each other?"

Zhanchi hissed in hostility but as Wuya held up the Emperor Scorpian he quickly relented. "What did you want?"

* * *

The old lady had finished her tea and gave Hu's ear one last scratch. "So the Heylin side has played their hand. Well guess now would be a good time to start playing mine."

The grass around her waved slightly as a gentle breeze picked up.

* * *

Kimiko put away her cellphone. "I'm not getting any signal. So I say we get moving. Now!""

Kimiko summoned out the Silver Manta Ray. Rai was about to climb in when the breeze touched him, causing the hairs on the back of his neck to stand on end. He turned to the direction that the breeze had come from.

"Rai!" Kimiko called.

Rai turned to the two women. "We've got to go that way." Rai pointed the horizon.

"The temple is the other way." The Wudai warrior argued.

"Just trust me on this. Something is telling me we have to go that way."

Kimiko looked at Rai for a moment and then relented. "Alright, I'll trust you. What's that way?"

"We're about to find out."

"Straining the trust a little Rai."

Dispite this, Kimiko followed Rai's directions and flew the Silver Manta Ray in the direction away from the temple. Soon the surroundings changed from being a forrest to wasteland and the Wudai Warrior started recognising the scenery. "Rai, you might not realise this but we are in Chase Young territory. Now would be a good time to either start figuring out what we're doing here or start heading back."

Rai looked at her in frustration. "You know what, Kimiko..." He then saw something he recognised but really wished he hadn't. "Land this thing, NOW!"

* * *

"So our terms are simple." Wuya surmised. "You help us to conquer the world, starting with the Xiaolin Temple. In exchange, we'll let you live and even through in your old kingdom to sweeten the deal."

Zhanchi glared the Heylin witch but knew there was no way out of this. "Very well."

"Excellent. Oh and before I forget, there is the small matter of my former apprentice, Rai."

Zhanchi let out another angry hiss. "When I meet that freak next, his charred remains will be crushed and scattered across the lands.

Wuya and Hannibal smiled evilly. "I think we can live with that."

* * *

"Oh man we are in for a world of pain." Rai said. "Not to mention darkness, destruction and general discomfort, but mostly pain.

Chiyoko, Kimiko and Rai had managed to land unseen at a nearby rock face and were spying Wuya and Hannibal using the Falcon Eye.

"What are you talking about?" Kimiko asked. "You destroyed him before."

"Correction, I half-killed myself and got lucky." Rai answered. "and trust me when I say that what I finally killed him with is no longer an option." He wasn't liking the fact that the short comings of being human had already turned up.

Kimiko looked through the Falcon eye again and recognised the giant serpent. "Hey that's the Zoombie snake Chase used against us in our first Wudai quest, we turned it into. We turned it into dust."

"Well next time turn it into finer dust." Rai then noticed the open chest that was lying beside Wuya. "and they used the Treasure of the Blind Swordsman as a power source. Perfect."

"So we know what we're up against, let's get back to the temple, get some back up, fire power and make some flaming snake shish-kebabs."

"It's not just Zhanchi we should be worried about." Rai said. "That's the bone yard. The site of where corpses of his fallen army were just left to rot."

Chiyoko tilted her head slightly. "So?"

"So Wuya and Hannibal have already started the resurrecting demon game, why would they stop with just one?"

* * *

As the sun was fully eclipsed, the land was filled with unnatural shadows. Zhanchi stretched out his wings, filled the land below him with his dark energy. "Arise my army." At his command the earth started to shift and crack as hundreds of his former minions were reanimated and dig their way to the surface.

There were all sorts of demonic creatures including but not limited to winged, fanged, clawed, scaly and snarling.

Wuya and Hannabil looked on at their new army in pure malicious glee.

"First Dashi's accursed temple will fall," Wuya gloated. "Then Chase and then THE WORLD! MWHAHAHAHA!" When she finally sighed happily as she hugged herself. "I just love how tingly I feel after a good evil laugh."

* * *

"We've got to beat them to the temple." Kimiko leapt back into the Silver Manta Ray. "Come on Rai."

Rai paused. "No you guys go ahead. I'll stay behind and see if I can even the odds a little."

"Are you crazy? Do you see army sprouting out of the ground?"

"Exactly. The Rio Reverser hasn't got this much power. They must be piggy backing it off of the power of treasure of the blind swordsman." Rai explained. "While the box is open they can't move it. If I can get to it and close it, maybe that will weaken them."

"Maybe? We're risking our necks on a 'maybe'?"

"No we're risking **my** neck." Rai ran to the edge of the rock face. "Even if this eliminates the army, Zhanchi himself is still a problem. The temple's gonna need your help."

Kimiko bit her lip, she didn't want to admit it but Rai had a point. She dug into the bag she had brought with her and pulled out Rai's sword. She climbed out of the Manta Ray. "Here," She handed the sword to Rai. "As soon as we clear up the mess at temple I'll be right back to get you. You'd better still be alive when I get back." She warned.

"Don't worry, I'm not planning on finishing my first day as human with death," Rai assured her. He then glanced down at the sword and back up at Kimiko. "Umm, not to be ungrateful but you didn't happen to bring along some attack wu, did you?" He asked tentatively. "Or perhaps a shirt?"

"Sorry Rai, I left all attack Wu at the temple in the off chance something like this happened." Kimiko replied, indicating the giant serpant. "And I don't know what you did with the rest of your robes."

With no other option, Rai shrugged in attempted nonchalance. "That's fine. If all else fails I just stab the enemy with my erect nipples."

Despite herself, Kimiko groaned. "Is now really the time to be discussing your nipples?"

Rai let out a chuckle. "Probably not." He gave Kimiko a reassuring fist-tap on the shoulder. "See ya when this is all over."

"I'd better." Kimiko warned half-heartedly.

With that Rai started to head down the rock face towards the treasure of the blind swordsman as Kimiko got into the Silver Manta Ray to fly with Chiyoko towards the Temple.

They hadn't said anything more to each other because neither one of them was prepared to face the possibility that it may be the last time they see each other.

Unbeknownst to them the old lady was nearby and watching on.

"That's it Rai," She muttered approvingly. "It's time to test how truly strong you are."

* * *

Chase sat his throne, resting the side of his chin on his fist as he waited for the Heylin eclipse to be over. During the eclipse his power was greatly diminished and his army was in an unbreakable slumber. Though this had been kept secret from his enemies but he knew better than to tempt fate. So all he could do was sit here, wait and wonder if his visions would come to pass.

Chase looked up from his fist and saw a figure as it came out of the shadows. "I expected someone to try and take advantage of my moment of weakness. I didn't expect it to be you though."

* * *

The Silver Manta raced through the sky as Kimiko kept trying to make contact with the temple. She finally got through.

"_Kimiko, we've been trying to reach you, any luck with..."_

"No time!" Kimiko interrupted. "We've found out Wuya and Hannibal's plans. A giant snake named Zanchi Fenhui has been brought back to life and now him and a massive army are heading your way, and when I say massive, I'm saying battle of Thermopylae and we're the Spartans."

"_Get back to the temple as soon as you can, we'll prepare for the onslaught."_

As Kimiko hung up Chiyoko asked. "Did you have to use an example that ended in brutal death?"

Kimiko didn't bother answering that. "Can we get help from your people?"

"I've tried," Chiyoko answered. "The team I came with is mostly out of commission from when Rai attack them and there aren't any cleansers that would be able to get here in time. I'm all you'll probably be getting."

Kimiko didn't slow down but she did mentally pause. "Look, this isn't your fight. I need to get back to my temple ASAP but after we get there, if you want to..."

"Not on your life." Chiyoko interrupted. "I'm seeing this through to the end."

"Glad to hear it."

The rest of the trip was silent until they landed at the temple. Clay and Omi raced in to greet them.

"Kimiko, you're arm is healed," Omi stated. "How?"

"That would be me." Chiyoko said. "I'm here to help. Look I know last time I was here things had gone kinda badly but believe me when I say..." She was silenced Clay throwing a dagger like Shen Gong Wu into her hands.

"Dat's the 'Thorn of the Thunderbolt'," Clay quickly explained. "Point it, say it's name and watch out for the recoil."

Wudai warriors then ran off to prepare for the attack, leaving Chiyoko standing there holding her new Wu.

"Um...I guess I'll go...do something then."

* * *

Rai tried to remain silent as he crept across the now vacant to bone yard, trying hard to remain unseen the by the demonic forces that had taken to the sky's and were heading for the Xiaolin Temple. As much as he hated the fact that they were heading for the temple, he was no good to his friends if a stragglier saw him and made the army do a U-turn to destroy him first.

Seeing the still open treasure just chest in his sight he went in to a sprint to close the distance. The sprint was promptly cut off by an axe embedding itself between him and the treasure. He turned to the direction that the axe come from and saw a few mean looking ogres.

The lead ogre retrieved his axe and was now blocking Rai's path. "Human, you were foolish to think the treasure would be left unguarded. The sensible thing for you now is to accept your approaching demise with quiet dignity."

"Pft," Rai took out his sword, "as if turning human means I'll start acting sensibly." He then pointed the blade at the ogre as he entered an attack stance, "Besides, I'd rather die the way I lived; screaming and fighting desperately to stay alive." Rai then charged in. "AAAAARGH!"

* * *

The temple was as prepared for the approaching onslaught as they were going to get. The Temple Monks manned the walls with Bows and Wu in hopes of offering ranged support.

Meanwhile the Wudai Warriors, armed with their Wudai weapons were standing alone on the clearing in front of the temple, ready to be the first line of defence and to fore full their duty as champions of the Xiaolin

The horizon darkened as Wuya and Hannibal rode Zhanchi, followed by their demonic legion.

Omi's grip on the Shimo staff tightened. Despite being called the Wudai Warriors they all knew that this would be the first time they had truly gone to war.

Despite knowing that he stay focused, Omi was still compelled to break the silence. "I just want to say no matter what happens today, there is no-one else I would rather face a demonic Heylin army with."

Clay and Kimiko smiled before giving a unified, "Us too."

"Well I hope you don't mind little extra help though."

The Wudai Warriors looked to their left and saw that Chiyoko had joined the front line. "What? Cover fire isn't my style."

"Indeed..." Master Fung appeared to their right, armed with his bow. "...and a good teacher knows when to stand by his students."

Dojo appeared on his shoulder. "And where Master Fung goes, I go."

Master Fung turned to the Temple. "1500 years ago Grand Master Dashi built this temple to help preserve the balance of the world and to stop it from plunging in Darkness, every generation that has upheld the sacred duty of defending the Xiaolin way. Everyone of you stands here because you believe in this duty and has done everything to stand by that duty. Today you will probably be asked to give more than what has ever been asked of you but as you ready yourselves remember what you fight for..."

Clay threw his to side, knowing that now would not be the time to be worrying about head gear, and readied his Big Bang Meteorang.

"For da world!"

Kimiko readied some Arrow Sparrows in each hand and let out a calming breath.

"For the greater good!"

Omi turned his staff into a spear and his dots started to glow as the demon army started to descend.

"For the Xiaolin way!"


	29. War

**Author's note: OK so I know that a lot of my readers probably (and justifiably) want to throttle me for the delay in getting this chapter poster (some of you may still want to throttle me once you reach the end of this chapter). I'm sorry about the delay. However, despite the delays, know that we are in the home stretch and will reach the conclusion by the end of this month.**

**That's right, by the end of September we will reach the end of this story. So sit back and enjoy as we begin to wrap up what has, for me personally, been one heck of a fun ride.**

"I expected someone to try and take advantage of my moment of weakness. I didn't expect it to be you though." Chase stared across from his throne at Master Monk Guan.

Guan merely shrugged. "I am not here fight you. There would be no honour in defeating you like this."

"If it situation was reversed, I would not show you any mercy." Chase informed Guan.

"I don't doubt that," Guan replied, completely unfazed. "Though perhaps that's why fate decided that you would be the one with period of being powerless and not I."

Chase glared at Guan. "Why are you here?"

"While you are withdrawn from the world during the eclipse, I must withdraw as well for risk of upsetting the balance." Guan pulled out his Xiangqi set. "I was hoping to take the opportunity to challenge an old friend to a friendly game of Xiangqi while we wait to see what will become of the world after the events of today."

Chase raised an eyebrow. "You expect me to entertain some twisted sense of nostalgia?"

"You had something better to do today?" Guan asked innocently as he set the board up at a nearby table.

Chase glared at Guan some more and yet still got up and sat down at the table across from him. "If I'm playing this stupid game, I get to be red."

* * *

Rai crashed back first into a nearby rock. He wiped some blood from the side of his mouth as he tried to refocus. "Alright so that didn't work."

"You were a fool to come here." The head ogre mocked. "You are slow, weak, powerless and no match for us."

"Oh yeah?" Rai retorted weakly, "well you're ugly." An awkward silence filled the area. "That's right, I went there."

The head ogre turned to the others. "Make sure to kill him slowly. I want as much enjoyment out of his demise as possible."

Rai reached for his sword, only to realise

Rai raced to get to his sword. Just as he was about to reach it, an ogre stomped on it, snapping the blade in half. His irises narrowed in rage.

"THAT'S IT!" Rai did a double palmed wind strike into the abdomen the ogre, though lacking wind powers meant that it was nothing more than a double palm strike and a weak one at that. Rai gaped at how ineffectually his attack. "Oh yeah...I human now." The ogre raised his fist. "Crud."

* * *

When the demons finally descended upon the temple, all hell broke loose. Naturally the Wudai Warriors weren't going to go down easy. When legion got within range, the warriors opened fire, in Kimiko's case literally.

The opening attack of the three xiaolin elements as well the ranged Wu & weaponry of the monks was powerful and had probably killed a good chunk of the demons. The problem was that with an army as big as Zhanchi's legion, it was like hitting a tidal wave with a cannon ball, they were able to take the losses and still have enough to keep going.

When the wave finally hit the temple, all formal formations broke off and it became an all out brawl for survival.

"DRAGON KUMAI FORMATION!"

The Wudai Warriors gained a coloured aura matching their elements and then promptly split off to battle the invaders on several fronts.

"Arrow Sparrows!" Kimiko rained fire down on unsuspecting demons. She then spun round to see archers aiming for her. Before either side could react, the archers suddenly split in two and fell to the ground revealling Omi stand there with his Shimo staff shaped like a giant scythe.

Kimiko gave Omi a grateful smile and then threw a fireball at him. The fireball missed Omi by inches but hit the demon that had been trying to sneak up on him.

Omi gave a grateful smile back as two went back into battle.

* * *

Chiyoko was having some issues as she battled a demon that was coming at her with a bladed whip. The issue being that the demon wanted her dead and wasn't giving Chiyoko a chance to come in close enough for a counter attack.

Realising she had nothing to lose, Chiyoko pointed the Wu at the demon. "Thorn of the Thunderbolt!" The thunderbolt hit the demon square on, almost completely vaporising it.

Chiyoko looked down at the Wu. "Note to self, if I survive this I am so getting myself one of these."

* * *

Clay was busy fending off demons left and right. Soon he found himself surrounded by a variety of demons.

"WUDAI CRATER EARTH!"

Clay stomped the ground, sending earth spikes in all directions and skewering the nearby demons. The cowboy was about to move on when a long tail wrapped around him and lifted him off the ground.

"Such anger," commented the snake-lady whose tail it was. "How about a nice hug to relax you."

She then started to squeeze the life out of Clay.

* * *

Rai quickly picked himself back up again. "Right, so hitting their legs with my body worked about as well hitting their fists with my body. What's the next plan?" One of ogres picked him up in a bear hug refused to let go.

Rai tried to struggle out of the ogre's hold but nothing was working. The head ogre readied his axe. "We will fest well on your corpse, human."

Rai was about to resign himself to his fate when a thought crossed his mind. He looked up the ogre that was holding him. "You do realise that he's swinging that big axe at both of us, don't you?"

The look on the ogre's face told Rai that he hadn't realised that and as the axe swung in, he quickly dodged it.

"WHAT ARE YOU DOING?" The head ogre demanded.

"You were swinging an axe at me!"

They stopped arguing when the realised that Rai had gotten free. "Alright, I may be a human now but I'm still a warrior. I won't go down that easy."

Rai then re-entered the fray, he dodged right to avoid an ax slash. Side stepped to the right to avoid a full on tackle. Feinted to the left but then went right to avoid a spear. Ducked down and rolled to the right. Rai leapt in the air mid roll to avoid a chain. He then landed and turned back to the ogres.

"You know why I know I'm going to win this?" Rai asked, "Because unlike you, I have something worth fighting for." He then gave a dramatic pause as the ogres finally realised that Rai's constant dodging to the right had resulted in the whole battle having been turned 180 degrees and that Rai was now standing beside the treasure chest. "Though being smarter than you also helps."

Before the ogres could stop Rai, he reached out and closed and closed the chest with a satisfying thump.

* * *

The snake lady's tight squeeze suddenly slackened. When it was loose enough for him to start breathing again, Clay mustered up his strength to fully break free. When the snake body finally fell down to ground limply it was only then that Clay saw a scorched stump where the creature's head used to be.

Clay looked up and saw Kimiko standing nearby with a fire ball in her hands. "Shake it off, Cowboy, This battle is far from over."

* * *

Rai looked down at the now closed chest and then up at the scenery and ogres that had remained completely unchanged. "Well that was disappointing."

The ogres burst out laughing. "You thought that closing the box would change anything? We are infused with the power of Zhanchi Fenua himself. Only at his defeat will my brethren and I fall."

Rai looked down at the chest in dismay before taking in a deep breath and rebuilding his resolve. "Well in that case I'll just have to win this fight the old fashioned way."

"And what way is that?"

With a heave, Rai flung the chest at the head ogre. The ogre effortlessly caught it and was about to make a smug reply when Rai leapt in with what remained of his sword. There wasn't much of the blade left but there was still enough to slice the ogre's head cleanly off.

"By any means necessary."

The remaining ogres, despite having lost their leader, charged in blindly at the smaller opponent, Rai twisted his body sideways dodge an incoming spear thrust, Rai grabbed hold of the top of the spear's shaft and used his other hand to chop the end off from the rest of the spear.

The ogre looked at his broken spear in dismay, briefly forgetting about Rai until the ex-demon did a base-ball slide between his legs while at the same, using the spear end a makeshift dagger, delivering a deep slash into the his thigh, right across the femoral artery.

Having a similar physiology to humans and lacking the knowledge on how to react, the ogre collapsed before he could attack again as he started to bleed out. Rai leapt to his feet and prepared for the next strike when a chain wrapped around his neck, He was able wedge his free hand in before the chain tightened around his throat. The ogre holding the other end of the chain looked on rather smug, until the spearhead flew in and went straight through the creature's eye.

Rai pull the slack chain off his neck and jumped in the air to dodge the last ogre that was charging at him, head first like a rhino. Rai landed on the ogre's back, wrapped the chain around it's neck and pulled back with all his might. The ogre struggled to get the chain off but soon collapsed due to lack of oxygen. Only when it completely stopped moving did Rai let go of the chain.

"Only fall at the defeat of Zhanchi, my tanned human butt." Rai said smugly. When he realised that he was the only one standing there, his bravado evaporated as he support himself against a rock, catching his breath and tryto ignore how much his body was hurting.

"Aww what's the matter? Did me and my buddies make you tired?"

Rai turned to see the head from the ogre he had decapitated was talking to him. Rai glowered slightly "I'd blame this on hitting my head but frankly this is more or less the norm for my life, human or not. So I take it you're not a run of the mill hell spawn."

"Indeed," The head replied. "And as soon as I grow my body back I will cut your head off and see how you like it."

"And how long would it take for you to grow back an entire body?" Rai asked. "A week?"

"Six and a half days," the head corrected defensively.

"Well good luck with that, sorry that I'm not waiting round but I've got places to be."

"Why bother?" The head asked. "My Lord and his army will have already descended upon the temple. By the time you reach the temple, it will be nothing but ruins."

Realising that the head had a point, Rai tried to jumpstart his tired mind, like it was an old car, running through possibilities. Starting with option A, he kicked the dead body off of the Treasure of the blind Swordsman.

"I can use the treasure to get me back to the temple."

"And what?" The Ogre head asked mockingly. "You think you can take on my lord's army by yourself? You, a weak, frail, pathetic...ugh!" The head was finally silenced by being crushed under a rock.

"If I wanted a second opinion I would have brought the hallucinations back."

And at that he was finally alone.

Just him and the treasure of the blind swordsman.

It was then that Rai had two realisations, neither of which was particularly pleasant or inescapable. Firstly that even if the treasure was to take him back, human Rai wouldn't be enough to save the temple. Secondly, the treasure could do more for him than just offer transport.

* * *

Wuya, Hannibal and Zhanchi were still flying in the sky as they watched the battle going on below.

"I have to admit," Hannibal said. "For a dusty old temple, they're not doing too badly. Who knows, the way this fight is going, they may even drive us out."

Wuya rubbed her chin in mock thoughtfulness. "Hm, you may have a point." She then petted the top of Zhanchi's head. "Would you be a dear?"

Zhanchi let out an annoyed hiss but still started to glow as the glove of Jisaku within his body activated.

Suddenly all of the temple's weapons, the wu, the wudai weapons, even the mundane ones, flew out of their owner's hands skywards. Zhanchi swooped in and swallowed all the weapons up.

With the loss of their weapons, most of the monks were quickly over powered by the demons and soon the only the Wudai warriors remained.

The three young monks battled valiantly, being able to use their elements despite losing their weapons. But soon the temple was completely overrun and they found themselves surrounded by a seemingly endless army. Despite this, they back put their backs to each outer and readied for a last stand.

"I wouldn't suggest that," Wuya said as she indicated towards an ogre that was hold a sword to a barely conscious Master Fung's throat.

Realise that there was nothing left to do, the Wudai Warriors surrendered.

Hannibal held up his tentacle in celebration. "The temple is ours!"

* * *

Rai looked at the treasure. He crouched down onto his knees and placed a pair of shaking hands on the chest. He exhaled slowly, hoping to calm the internal struggle he was dealing with. _Well at least I got to feel one sunrise. _Summoning all his will power, he flung open the chest and made his wish.

"Blind Swordsman! Make me a demon again!"

Then there was silence.

Rai opened the eyes he had involuntarily closed when he realised nothing had happened. He looked around and all he saw was a desolate wasteland.

When he looked down, all he saw was an empty chest.


	30. Decision

A wolf demon scurried up to Wuya and Hannibal. It stood on his hind legs to give a salute before giving its report. "We have searched the whole temple; there is no sign of the demon you mentioned. All we found was this..."

One of the demon's comrades scurried in, dragging along Rai's outer robe. Wuya picked it up, testing the feel of the fabric in her hands. "It's his alright. But it still doesn't explain where he is." Wuya turned to the warriors, who an ogre carrying a set of keys had finished chaining up. "Care to shed some light about the location of my troublesome apprentice?"

"He is not your apprentice anymore." Omi said venomously, "and no doubt he will find a way to kick all your demonic backsides 36 ways TO CHINESE NEW YEAR!."

Wuya eyed the young warrior for a moment before punching him in the gut, hard. "Anyone else care to share?"

The captive warriors remained silent but defiant. Hannibal jumped onto Kimiko right shoulder and then testingly jumped up and down on it. "Hm...this shoulder seems mighty healthy considering I shot a arrow into it not too long ago."

"That was you?"

Hannibal turned to Chiyoko. "It most certainly was, which leads me to my next question. What are _you _doing here? When I left, Rai was just about to give you a new breathing hole. Why would you be back here, helping the temple."

"Well you see, it turns out we had a lot in common," Chiyoko replied, "namely hating scum like you."

Wuya rolled her eyes until something caught her eye. Without warning, Wuya ripped off Kimiko's sash. As Wuya inspected it, everyone else finally noticed the blood that had been smeared on the aqua cloth.

"Now why would the warrior that charbroils her opponents have blood on her?" Wuya asked thoughtfully before holding the sash out for a wolf demon to sniff.

"It has a demonic essence." The wolf demon confirmed. "But it's not from any demon here."

Kimiko and Chiyoko shared a nervous glance. Wuya placed a glowing hand on the blood smear."

"HEYLIN BLOOD RECALL."

Black and blue energy floated out of sash and swirled in the air until an image appeared. There wasn't any sound but it showed Rai attacking Kimiko and Chiyoko. Then, when Kimiko had gotten hold Rai, it showed Chiyoko charging in with glowing hands. As the attack collided with Rai and blood burst out of him, the image vanished in a bright light.

"Does that mean what I think it means?" Hannibal asked.

"Yes," Wuya said, slightly stunned. "My former apprentice is dead."

* * *

Rai repeatedly opened and closed the treasure, getting increasingly frantic each time. "No, no. NO! YOU CAN'T DO THIS TO ME! AFTER CREATING THE FRICKENING ARMY OF DEMONS YOU CAN'T TELL ME YOU DON'T HAVE ENOUGH POWER TO CREATE JUST ONE MORE!"

"The spirit still has enough power to create a million more such armies," a voice said. "If you _wanted_ it to."

Rai turned his slightly to see the old lady he had met in the forest a while ago. "Look, strange cat person that may or may not actually be real, I don't have time for this right now." He said in exasperation. "Right now people I care about are in deep trouble and the only hope I have of saving them has decided to stop working!"

"You know how the treasure of the blind swordsman works." The old lady said in her gentle voice. "It will grant what the user _wants _it to do, not what the user asks it to do."

"Alright, Treasure of the blind swordsman, I _want_ to be a demon again." Rai tried opening the chest again and still got nothing. "I want it! I want it! I WANT IT!"

"Shouting a lie doesn't make it anymore true."

"Of course I don't want to be a demon again!" Rai snapped. "I never thought I'd get to feel human again. But my friends need me and human me just isn't strong enough."

"It was strong enough a few moments ago." The old lady replied

"Those were just five Ogres and I still almost got killed." Rai argued, "We're talking about a whole army of creatures just as nasty. The way I'll stand a chance is if I demon back up. "

"But if you do that, there's no turning back." She explained. "Chiyo's virtue was only strong enough to be used once."

Rai paused and looked down at the necklace. He then quickly shook his head. "I lasted this long as a demon, what's a lifetime more?"

"And what if you lose your soul in the process?" The old woman asked. "What happened to you was a unique occurrence that not even the treasure may be able to replicate. If you ask the treasure to make you a demon so that you can save the temple, you'll no longer be you anymore. You'll have an unexplainable urge to destroy the army invading the temple but when that is done there'll be nothing left but for you to finally become the creature everyone always thought you were."

Rai's hands fell limply to his side as the true gravity of what he was asking for hit. If he became a demon, his friends would eventually have to hunt and distroy him. There would be no other way. Regardless of what he chose he would still lose evertything.

The temple.

Master Fung.

Omi.

Kimiko.

Rai's fist clenched. "You seem to know a lot about everything that's going on." Rai muttered, never really looking at the strange old lady. "So tell me this, if I become demon again, will I save the temple."

"Yes." The lady calmly replied.

"Then it's enough. My friends need me and I'm not going to let them down." Rai grabbed the lids of the chest again, with a renewed certainty. "And if costs me my soul, so be it."

As Rai opened the chest, he saw energy glowing underneath it. Before he could fully open it a massive paw slammed it shut. Rai's gaze followed up the leg that was attached to the paw until he came face to face with a tiger. Before the former demon could he heard the sound of clapping. Rai turned to see the old lady had developed a divine glow.

"Well done Rai." She said. "By your act of loyalty you have passed the final test and proven yourself worthy."

Rai stared in amazement as he tried to processs what he was seeing before the pieces finally fell into to place. A divine being, in the form of a an old woman, with a pet tiger.

"Feng Po Po," Rai said in awe. "Goddess of the breeze."

"It is one of my forms," Feng Po Po answered, "Your friends know me as this..." She then changed into the bird of paradise.

"Whoa." Rai said

"Always having to show off," The tiger said then noticed Rai was gapping at him, "that's right, I can talk." His ears perked up. "Wanna see me do my John Wayne impression? It's really good."

"Hu!" Feng Po Po had returned to her old lady form but still maintained her divine glow, "Now really isn't the time."

Hu relented but not before muttering to Rai, "She prefers Clint Eastwood."

"Rai, in the time between now and when you had first been restored to flesh you have faced numerous tests and despite this have shown kindness, courage, strength and loyalty. These gifts, more than anything else, prove that you are worthy of what I want to give you."

She held out her hand. As Rai cautiously took it she pulled him to his feet. She then turned back to the tiger and signalled him with a nod. Using his fore-paws Hu flung open the chest.

There was a bright light and when it faded, floating above the chest was the spirit of Grandmaster Dashi, the first ever Xiaolin Dragon.

"Hi Rai, long time no see." The spirit said. "Though I've got say that you're looking good, ditching the demon eyes is a step forward though I'd definitely suggest a bit more effort on the wardrobe."

Rai raised an eyebrow as he turned to the goddess. "Not that I don't like getting fashion advice from a dead man. Is there a reason he's here?"

"Firstly, I'm not dead, I'm transcended," Dashi corrected. "Big difference. Secondly, why do you think I'm here?"

Feng Po Po affectionately put an arm over Rai's shoulders as she pulled him close. "You want to save your home but mere human is insufficient and full demon is unacceptable." An almost mischievous smile appeared on her face. "So how about we try option number three?"

Rai paused but as he started to catch on developed a mischievous smile of his own. "Alright," he looked at what remained of his clothing and his sword. "But if we're gonna do this; I'll need a few things."

* * *

"Well what to do?" Wuya asked thoughtfully. "Though you did save me time killing Rai for, he was still my apprentice so there has got to be retribution."

"Would ya mind moving this along," Hannibal said, having grown to human size and wearing Clay's cowboy hat as a spoil of war. "We do have a world to conquer."

"Now who isn't taking the time to enjoy themselves?" Wuya mocked. "Though It's hard to think straight on an empty stomach." The witch picked up Dojo and threw him to the ogre that had been chaining everyone up. "Thing you can whip something up?"

Ogre nodded and started to walk off, holding onto Dojo.

"I'm warning you," The dragon shrieked. "try to eat me and you'll regret it!

Wuya chuckled, "I'll take my chances."

* * *

Dojo squirmed as he tried to get out of the ogre's grip as it carried the dragon off down a hallway to the kitchen. "You don't want to eat me; 1500 year old dragon meat is tough and stringy. It'll give you heart burn."

Before dojo could protest anymore there was a loud crash and the ogre suddenly fell to the ground, unconscious. As Dojo escaped from the now loosened grip, he turned and saw his rescuer.

"Well that was unexpected."

* * *

"Oh screw it," Wuya pulled out a knife. "Let's keep it simple." Using her strength she firmly kept Kimiko's head in place as she slowly brought the blade closer the young warrior's flesh.

"Wuya, you really don't want to do that."

The Heylin witch let out a frustrated huff as she lowered turned to the source of the voice. "And why is tha..." She trailed off when she saw Rai standing there, wearing Xiaolin training robes with a red jacket, white pants and a black sash, as well as his trademark sunglasses.

"Well aside from the obvious mess, if that blade is as sharp as it looks and you went in from that angle, chances are you'll go straight through the Carotid artery, meaning she probably bleed out in two minutes or less so while unpleasant, it's by far not the most agonising way to die." Rai paused as he realised what he had just said. "What I meant to say is, 'no Wuya. Killing is wrong. Bad Wuya, bad bad Wuya'."

Wuya gapped at Rai "What are you doing here? And what are you wearing?"

"You like it?" Rai asked, gesturing to the Xiaolin temple robes he was now wearing. "I figured it was time for a change."

Hannibal turned to Wuya. "You told me that sorry excuse for a demon was dead!"

Rai let out a chuckle. "You know that's what I love about the Heylin side," he removed his sunglasses. "Never taking the time to consider the loopholes."

Everyone did a double take. Rai's human eyes seemed to sparkle as he enjoyed the looks of shock he was receiving. "That's right, Homo Sapien and proud of it."

"Impossible!" Wuya hissed

Rai shrugged in reply.

"The impossble happens. Now I know we aren't on the best of terms." Rai said sympathetically. "You feel me no longer wanting to work for the Heylin side was a break of trust but honestly I just felt you were enabling my negative behaviour." Rai then put his hands together as if in prayer. "However, finding my humanity has given me a new appreciation for all life and the place of everything in the cosmic balance. So instead resorting to violence and malice can we not find a peaceful solution?"

There was a moment of silence where everyone present just stared at him blankly. Rai sighed as he cracked his knuckles. "Yeah I didn't think so but at least I now have karma on my side."

Wuya snapped her fingers and suddenly Rai was swarmed by demons.

"WUDAI STAR WIND!"

The mound of demons erupted outwards, pushed away by a giant gust of wind. All that remained was Rai on one knee, arms pointed out to the sides, wearing his trademark smirk. "Just came with that move, what do you think?"

"A little stiff on the execution," Master Fung commented, "but you'll loosen up with practise."

Wuya and Hannibal stared at Rai in shock. This just caused the former demon to shake his head in amusement. "You didn't honestly think that I wouldn't have a few tricks up my sleeve?"

Wuya quickly regained her composure. "Well unless you want to see us slaughter the hostages I suggest you surrender."

Rai paused and looked meaningfully past the Heylin Witch. "What hostages?"

Wuya and Hannibal turned to the sound of chains hitting the ground and saw everyone from the temple out of their restraints and Dojo sitting on Master Fungs shoulder, twirling a key around his finger. "Told ya you'd regret trying to eat me."

Before Wuya could react she heard Rai's voice beside her ear. "Yeah, turning you back to me wasn't that smart either."

Next thing Wuya knew, she went crashing into a nearby wall.

Hannibal growled. "Why you..."

"WUDAI IRON PALM!"

Hannibal was hit by a three super palm strikes and was sent crashing into the same wall, landing right on top of Wuya. When the Heylin witch was able to get the giant bean of of her she realised she had dropped the Emperor Scorpion. Before she could react, she saw it floating up into the air until Zhanchi swooped down and swallowed it.

Wuya and Hannibal were quickly surrounded demons with Zhanchi looming over them. Wuya nervously chuckled as the demons growl. The duo then ran screaming as a good part of the army gave chase.

"Well dat was un expected." Clay remarked.

"Now that Zhanchi Fenui is no longer being controlled, perhaps they will leave in peace." Omi said hopefully.

"BURN THIS TEMPLE AND ALL WHO DWELL HERE!"

Clay gave Omi a raised eye brow. The young monk soberly replied. "Yes I realise that was being overly optimistic."

"Hey guys, sorry I'm late," Rai said sheepishly, "had to pick up a few things."

Clay dusted off his hat and put it back on as the young warriors went into a four sided attack formation. "Better late than never pal but if you have another cool trick to show us, we'll let it slide."

Rai smirked as he pulled out a glowing ball of energy out from his robes. "Funny you should say that." As he tossed the ball into the air, it split into four parts. A part landed squarely in the chest of each warrior. As the energy dissolved into their bodies, not only did it restore the energy that they had lost but it also created a bond between the three original Wudai warriors and their newest recruit.

What had once been three had now become four.

"WUDAI ORION FORMATION!"

As they performed their new formation, their bodies turned black but their uniquely coloured shown through outlining their bodies. Kimiko had a red aura, Omi had a white aura, Rai's aura was blue and he was floating few inches off the ground while Clay not only got a green aura but giant pairs of rock boots and gloves.

The temple monks stared on in awe. Dojo meanwhile had put on a pair of sunglasses to be able to see through the glow. "That's new."

The Wudai Warriors turned towards the demon hordes and spoke in unison.

"Get out of our temple."

"EARTH!"

Clay stomped hard onto the ground. The ground under every demon that was there shot upwards, sending them flying into air.

"WIND!"

Rai starting flying around the demons at break neck speed, soon trapping them within a massive hurricane.

"FIRE!"

Kimiko let out a stream of fire that started to engulf the entire hurricane. Rai quickly got out of the way before the entire thing became a flaming vortex.

"WATER!"

Omi then rose up a massive column of water that caused the vortex to erupt in a burst of steam. All that remained of the demon army was ash.

"Is that all of them?" Kimiko asked, before she remembered Zhanchi was still standing there. "Oh, right."  
Zhanchi stretched out his wings and flapped them, silently issuing a challenge. Clay, Omi and Kimiko readied themselves.

"No," Rai held out his arm, stopping his team as he reverted to his normal form. "He's mine."

Three other warriors stepped back, conceding Rai the chance to face his old foe alone.

Rai took to the air, with Zhanchi following right behind. Soon they were high above temple, in deadly dance of aerial combat high above the clouds.

"BLADE OF THE NEBULA!"

Rai's sword turned into a pair of nunchuks with a wind chain. The chain then started to stretch out as it become a long wind whip. Rai swung the whip at Zhanchi. The end wrapped around the snakes neck and tightened. Before Zhanchi could react Rai twisted sharply and with unexpected force was able to pull hard enough to send Zhanchi flying straight down.

Zhanchi crashed into to the ground, hard. When the dust settled, Zhanchi was still writhing on the ground trying to refocus.

"AHHHHHHH!"

As his vision started to refocus, Zhanchi looked and saw Rai in freefall, Blade of the Nebula held in both hands over head, heading straight for the demon serpent.

The sword pierced right where the demon's heart should be. Rai then twisted the sword and pulled it out. Rai looked into the gaping hole he created and found what he was looking for. "Nothing up my sleeve," Rai thrust is hand into the hole and pulled out the Rio Reverser. "And for my next, I'll make a group of demons disappear."

Without the Rio Reverser in his body, Zhanchi started to turn back into dust, he let out a deadly hiss that soon turned in to a death rattle until all that remained was pile of dust and the temple's Wu & weapons. Scanning the surroundings, Rai saw his old dagger on the ground. Rai picked up the Eye of Dashi and pointed it at the dagger. "Never again. EYE OF DASHI!" There was a strike of lightning and the dagger was completely, removing everything that had remained of the demon king Zhanchi Fenhui.

"Well that was fun," Rai commented. "Who wants to go get some ice cream?"

He then noticed Kimiko staring nervously at him. "What?"

"You're still human, right?" Kimiko asked. "you didn't just change back to...?"

Not sure of a better way to prove it, Rai opened his robe slightly, showing an unmarked chest. "I'm human alright," he assured, "In fact I even better than mere human because ladies and gentlemen there are now _four_ Wudai Warriors."

Omi tilted his head slightly. "Isn't the four unlucky?"

Rai closed up his robes "We'll worry about technicalities like that later."

Master Fung cleared his throat.

"You do realise that, abilities or not, the title of Wudai Warrior is something that is awarded by the temple, not something that can simply be claimed." Master Fung informed Rai.

There was a moment of awkward silence until a smile appeared on Master Fung's face as he surveyed what remained of the demon snake. "Though I must admit you do have an impressive resume. So if there are not objections from my fellow monks..." Master Fung glanced at said monks who simply shook their heads dumbly replied. "...I welcome to our ranks Rai..." The sash around Rai's waist glowed as it turned Aqua blue. "Wudai Warror and Future Xiaolin Dragon of the Winds."

What followed next Rai being on the receiving end of an ambush group hug from both Clay and Kimiko.

"Way to go Rai!"

"Welcome aboard buddy."

Omi cleared his throat to get Rai's attention. "While you obviously will not be as great a Wudai warrior as I am..." He then smiled sincerely as he gave Rai a respectful bow. "I am honoured to have you join us in the fight against evil."

Rai bowed in returned, "Likewise Omi."

The warriors then noticed the Heylin Eclipse had at long last ended.

* * *

"And that is game." Master Monk Guan said with a hint of satisfaction

Chase Young glared at the monk. The two immortal warriors then sensed the shift in power as the eclipse ended. Guan sighed slightly.

"I suppose now that you have your powers back you want to go back to being enemies straight away."

Chase looked down at the board for a moment. The pieces glowed slightly as they moved back in place. "Best out of three."

Guan smiled warmly. "Very well, old friend, but this time I get to be red."

* * *

"We have to do clean up already?" Rai asked in dismay.

"Yes," Master Fung said. "It is better to get it done sooner rather than later."

"But we just had a massive full on invasion from the Heylin side," Rai argued, "doesn't that warrant a little time to recuperate?"

Master Fung said thoughtfully, "You do have a point. In fact you four can have a week off." Rai perked up. "As soon as the temple has been restored."

Everyone chuckled as the new Wudai warrior's groan.

Chiyoko cleared her throat. "I'm not much of a housemaid so I think now is a good time to take my leave."

"Ok," Rai said quickly, "I'll show you out."

Clay and Omi were about to follow Kimiko stopped them with a shake of his head.

Once Rai and the priestess were some distance away from the others, Chiyoko chuckled slightly, "this certainly wasn't what I expected to happen after turning you human."

Rai quirked an eyebrow. "Not happy with how things turned out."

"More surprised than everything."

"Surprises are good, it stops the worlds Rai took out Chiyo's necklace and handed it back to Chiyoko. "Thank you...for everything."

Chiyoko looked down at the necklace for a moment before she put it back on. "It was an honour to be the one that ended your curse."

"So what will you do now?" Rai asked

Chiyoko paused. "I've always wanted to visit Venice. When I get back I'll probably go on with doing what I was always doing. One less demon in the world is a good start but it's still just a start." She started to leave. "Take care Rai."

Rai watched the priestess leave. As she walked down to When she was a reasonable distance away Rai's gaze naturally drifted upwards. It was then he saw Feng Po Po on top of a fully grown Hu sitting on a cloud, smiling as she waved to him. Beside her appeared the spirit of Dashi who gave Rai a wink and the big thumbs up. Hu even seemed to be smiling. Rai grinned as he waved back.

"Who are ya waving to, partner?"

Rai turned to see Clay standing there holding as two brooms.

Rai gave a shrug, "Just a wind goddess, a shape shifting tiger and the spirit of an ancient martial arts master, sitting on a cloud."

"Is that so?" Clay looked in the direction Rai had been looking but couldn't see anything. "Well that certainly would be a sight worth waving to."

Rai paused. "Wait. You believe me?"

"Does it make a difference either way?" The cowboy asked.

Rai gave one last glance towards the now empty sky. "I guess not." He then caught the broom Clay tossed to him.

"Well in that case, come on." The Texan replied. "I want to get this clean up done quickly so that we can have a break cause frankly these last few days have left me bushed."

Clay started to walk off. Rai smiled again as he followed. As strange as the last few days had been, to Rai it had been entirely worth it for two reasons.

At long last he was human again.

And at long last, he was home.

**Author's Note: Hope you enjoyed reading that, I know I really enjoyed writing that. Stay tuned cause the epilogue will be coming soon.**

**Also a few minor notes: **

**The number four is infact considered an unlucky number in Chinese culture because it is nearly homophonous to the word "death".**

**The game Chase and Guan were playing (Xiangqi) is an chinese game similar to chess. Thought to have descended from the Indian chess game of Chaturanga, there are indications that it was played all the way back to the Warring States Period (475 BC - 221BC)  
**


	31. Epilogue

Kimiko was finishing putting the final touches her little project when Clay walked holding two steaming cups.

"Thought ya might like a pick me up." Clay held out one of the cups. "So I decided to raid my stash o' Joe."

Kimiko smiled gratefully as she took the cup. It was late and most of the temple was already asleep and while tea was all well and good, sometimes a good cup of coffee just does the job so much better. She took a moment to savour smell before drinking.

"You do realise that ya could finish that stuff tomorrow." Clay took a sip from his cup.

As could be expected from a monk, Master Fung had kept his word. Once the temple had been fixed up, the four Wudai Warriors had been given the week off. While the others were content to do a lot of nothing, Kimiko had decided to do something a little more constructive. "Yeah I know, it's just that I was on a roll so I figured I might as well finish it tonight."

"Fair enough." Clay returned his attention to his coffee. "I think I saw Rai on the temple vault roof if ya wanted to show him."

"What makes you think that this has something to do with Rai?"

"Nothing, it's just that Rai seems to be taking up a lot of yer free time lately." Clay replied, "Not that ya seem ta mind."

Kimiko swallowed a little too much coffee at that statement. As she tried to splutter out an excuse, Clay raised a hand to silence Kimiko. "I'm not accusing ya of anything. Yer a tough girl and ya can take care of yerself. And for all o' Rai's quirks he was still there when we needed him say that makes him one of us." Him put a comforting hand on her shoulder. "When ya figure out what Rai means to ya I'll support it either way."

Kimiko smile warmly back. "Thanks."

"Though if I can make one suggestion, It might be a good idea to talk Rai out of the revenge scheme he's planning on Masters Cai and Gao."

"Those two? Didn't dumb and dumber get stuck with dung duty during the clean up." It turned out that as fearsome as the army of demons had been, they still hadn't been house trained.

"Well yeah but Rai still wants five minutes alone with the two so that they could settle their differences like men."

"What? Violently?"

"Mmm hmmm, Rai wanted to try out his new sword on their ungrateful hides," Clay explained, "But I told him dat da only weapon suitable for jerks like them is 'Love and Tolerance'."

Kimiko rolled her eyes at the sappy-ness of that sentiment until she realised something. "Wait, isn't 'Love and Tolerance' the name you gave your baseball bat?"

"Yup."

* * *

"They think they can hold me. I will escape this prison and soon all will tremble at the very mention of my name!" Jack Spicer let out an evil laugh. "Mwahahaahaha!"

"JACK!" The boy genius's attention was drawn to one of Psych ward attendants. "Was that an evil rant and laugh?"

Jack cowered slightly as he admitted. "Yes."

The attendant looked on sternly. "And what was our private rule?"

Jack sighed as he recited the rule. "No evil rants and only two evil laughs a day."

"And how many evil laughs have you done today?"

The boy genius looked down at his feet. "Two and half." He then looked up again saw the attendant glaring him. "What? That was only an evil chuckle when I bet Donald at checkers."

"And what did we say about evil chuckles?" The attendant asked in a stern but patient voice.

"That they are just evil laughs that aren't at full volume." Jack looked back down at his feet. "Sorry."

The attendant smiled warmly at Jack as she patted him on the back. "What's important is that you know what you did wrong." Her tone then brightened up completely. "Now how about we go get some pudding?"

"PUDDING!" Jack let out an excited squeal as he followed the attendant.

* * *

Kimiko found Rai at one of his favourite spots on the roof of the vault, on his back staring up at the night sky.

"So still looking for your star?" The fire warrior asked.

"Nah, I don't need my star anymore. I'm just looking at the stars in general." Rai answered, "I spent so long looking for one specific star that I stopped appreciating the whole picture."

"There's probably some profound wisdom to that." Kimiko commented. "So now that you're human do you think that you'll start having a normal person's sleep schedule?"

Rai let out a chuckle. "Just because I'm human doesn't make me normal." He squirmed slightly as he made himself more comfortable. "I'll get the finer points of being human sorted out eventually."

Kimiko placed hand on Rai's shoulder. "Of course you will, besides, there's plenty of time for stuff like that."

Rai placed a hand over Kimiko's as he tilted his head back to look up at her. "You're right, there is. Though, I've got to admit, it's pretty funny. Just as I finally find a place that accepted me despite the fact that I was a demon, I get my humanity back."

"You were never a real demon," Kimiko said as she slid down until she was right beside Rai. "The world was just a little slow in realising that."

"Better late than never I guess." He then noticed the laptop Kimiko was carrying. "So what's that for?"

Kimiko smirked as she sat back up and restarted her computer. "Remember when you said that if you successfully became human I could give you your new name?" Rai nodded, "Well I decided, why stop at just the name? Why not give you an identity?"

She handed the laptop over to Rai. Open on the screen was an image of a very official looking document. "What's this?" Rai asked.

"Your Birth Certificate." Kimiko explained. "Your name is Raimundo Pedrosa, you were born in a small hospital in Tubarão, Brazil. Once I process this, it will find its way into relevant databases."

Rai raised an eyebrow. "Alright, I have a string of questions so let's start from the top. Firstly, Raimundo?"

"Rai sounds more like a nickname than an actual name, who would honestly give their kid a three letter birth name."

"So you decided to stick with Rai?"

"Yeah I did," Kimiko replied. "For better or worse, Rai is who you are. Any other name for you would just seem wrong. Besides, Raimundo means protector so I figured it was fitting considering what we do."

"I see, and Pedrosa?"

"I did a South American surname search in and that one came up." Kimiko shrugged, "besides I think you look like a Pedrosa."

"And how many Pedrosas do you know?"

Kimiko winked at him. "Once we make the documentation official, you'll be the first."

"Alright, so why Tubarão, Brazil? I don't even know where that is and now I'm expected to know it as if I lived there."

Kimiko raised an eyebrow. "Just do a Google search. Besides you don't need to have lived there, you only need to have been born there. Brazil is far enough away from our usual places that any authorities who may question your identity would have a harder time verifying or disproving it. I chose that hospital in Tubarão because out of the Brazilian hospitals that I hacked into it was one of the latest ones to adopt modern digital documentation procedures for its birthing records so any gaps in your record would be ruled out as just bad filing." Kimiko explained. "I mean we will still have to come up with a backstory and create a paper trail that will explain how you got from Brazil to here in the space of your lifetime but we'll worry about that later."

"Kimiko," Rai decided to be as tactful as he could muster. "Is this legal?"

"Rai," Kimiko mockingly scolded, "Worrying about trivial things like legality is a sure fire way to lose your 'bad boy' image?"

"I have a 'bad boy' image?"

"Well it's more of a 'lovable psycho' image but we can work down from that." Kimiko amended. "So what do you think?"

Rai paused thoughtfully before sticking out his hand to indicate an imaginary banner. "Raimundo Pedrosa, Xiaolin Dragon of the Wind." He then gave Kimiko a satisfied smile. "I like the way that sounds."

Kimiko smiled as she held out the laptop. "Well then press enter and make it so."

Rai pressed the enter key. In less than a minute the transfer was complete and Raimundo Pedrosa became an electronic reality.

With that complete, Kimiko packed the laptop back in her bag. "Happy Birthday Mr Pedrosa. How did you want to spend it?"

Rai paused for a moment. "How about you tell me your story?"

"My story?" Kimiko asked. "But we've already told you most of the stuff that's happened since I came to the temple."

"What about before that?" Rai asked back. "How did Kimiko Tohimiko go from being a bundle of joy to being a can of concentrated kick ass?"

"Seriously, you want to listen to my life story?"

"Girl, my life has been nothing but excitement and danger. What might some boring to you is probably something fascinating for me." Rai moved a little closer to Kimiko and the fire warrior let him. "Besides, there is nowhere else I'd rather be than right here, right now. So I'm open to anything that will make this moment last a while longer."

Kimiko smiled and her cheeks turned slightly pink as she inched a little closer to Rai.

"Well in that case, it all started in the maternity ward of a not so little hospital in Tokyo..."

**The End**

* * *

**Author's Note: And that's all he wrote. As sad as I am to finish what has been an awesome ride it feels good to finally be able to finish this.**

**I would like the time to say thank you to everyone who took the time to read this story.**

**My biggest thank you goes to the people who took the time to review this story and especially the reviewers how kept coming back. You really helped to turn this into an amazing experience.**

**Though as fun as this has been for me, now that I finished this story I think it is time for me to retire from active Fanfic writing (if you could call the pace at which I updated as active).**

**I will still be visiting this site and I may still post the occasional oneshot, add few more fun adventures to Life as a Good Guy, maybe even a two or three chapter short story if the writting bug gets me but this is last double digit chapter story I will be posting on this website.**

**This is not because I have stop enjoying the fandoms I have been a part of or that I want to give up writing, far from it. This has been truely wonderful, it's just that now I want to move on to what I think is the next step; writing stories that involve using my own characters and my own settings.**

**I know there's a big difference between writing Fanfics and writing novels and that I still need to hone my skills some more but I have ideas that I want to try and finishing this story has shown me that I may have the stamina as well as the love of writing needed.**

**I now want to put a question to all my readers who have also posted stories here. Take a moment to just tally up how many words you have written in total. When you have the total I want you look at that number and just think about this; that is amount of words you have written purely for FUN. **

**You didn't do it to get paid, you didn't do it to get a passing grade, you didn't even do it because someone forced you to. You did it out of love for the subject matter and the enjoyment of being able to post stories here. That is not something that every person does or even what every member of any fandom would do. That makes it something special.**

**Someone pointed this out to me last year and it made me realise how much I actually enjoyed writing and that it was something I wanted to pursue. That's why I'm taking this time to point it out, because I feel not enough people stop to think about it. **

**I'm not saying that novel writing is easy or that it's for everyone but I wanted to end this story with something to think on. **

**Thank you again to everyone who took the time to read and/or review this story or any of my other works and I wish you all the best.**

**Regards**

**Mr Makulu**


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